The most distinctive feature of this small fish is the presence of barbels around the bottom jaw, which they use to detect their invertebrate prey.

[4] The stone loach is a common species and is found over most of Europe in suitable clear rivers and streams with gravel and sandy bottoms.

It is present in upland areas, also chalk streams, lakes and reservoirs as long as the water is well-oxygenated.

They live on the bottom, often partly buried, and they are particularly active at night when they rootle among the sand and gravel for the small invertebrates on which they feed.

[4] It is found in Baltic states, Eastern Europe, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Moldova, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Serbia and Montenegro, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.

As adults they prey on relatively large benthic invertebrates such as gammarids, chironomids and other insect larvae.