Recent collections have confirmed earlier reports of a small population in the Nahoon River. Recent surveys along the Kowie system revealed only 6 specimens after 4 days of surveying. In the Tyume River, a tributary of the Keiskamma River, the S. bainsii population is small and vulnerable to local extinction. The Eastern Cape Rocky occurs in rocky streams, wedges under rocks or other objects facing upstream waiting for insects, crabs or small fish to come into range. This species is sedentary.
Males grow faster, live longer and reach a larger size than females.
The males guard the eggs as do S. capensis males, and a spawning site is prepared by the male. The eggs are adhesive, 1.3 mm in diameter and have a small oil globule of 0.6 mm in diameter. The species is threatened by poor water quality, invasive alien fish and palnts, loss of habitat due to water abstraction and damming. These are common threats to many freshwater fish species but the limited geographical range of S. bainsii and their small population size exacerbates these threats. They are also very vulnerable to angling pressure.