Salmo farioides is characterized by large red spots, which are sometimes surrounded by whiteish areas, along the flanks and faint vertical bands that are residuals of parr marks.

Among mature individuals, females and males are roughly the same length and weight (36 mm and 458 g, respectively), based on measurements from a population sampled from the Morača River in Montenegro.

Salmo farioides serves as a bioindicator of the quality in upland rivers where it dominates cold-water streams and is at the top of the trophic pyramid.

[8][9] It is considered as a vulnerable species based on a state-wide threat assessment as a result of climate change and increasing water temperatures in their habitats, as well as overfishing due to recreational fishing.

[10][a] Hydrological modeling suggests that, based on pessimistic projections about the CO2 concentrations by the end of the century, suitable habitat for Salmo farioides will substantially decrease.