The population of this fish is declining due to loss of suitable habitat because of stream impoundment and land development.

The trispot darter is endemic to the Conasauga River and its tributaries[5] located in northern Georgia and southern Tennessee.

Other recent efforts to find the darter have not been successful; it is now only found in the Conasauga[5] and in Alabama's Big Canoe Creek.

When not breeding, it occupies the peripheral zones of the main river, with slow-moving water and silt gravel substrates with vegetation cover.

The species' only real competitor is the Coosa darter, because its mouth size and body length allow it to be a threat for food and space.