It is unclear whether the native range of this species includes the Tennessee River Drainage, but it is likely introduced to the drainage given the absence of the species from very extensive surveys from shell collectors in the area during mid-late 1800s (Clench 1962).

Viviparus georgianus often lives at high densities, sometimes up to 864/m2 (Lee et al., 2002; Pace and Szuch, 1985). It inhabits shallow waters, often amongst macrophytes, in spring to fall, before moving out to deeper areas to overwinter away from shore (Jokinen et al., 1982; Lee et al., 2002; Wade, 1985a), where it will burrow under the substrate for a period of inactivity (Pace and Szuch, 1985). In more open waters, fall migration begins earlier than in smaller lakes and ponds (Lee et al., 2002). Most growth generally occurs when waters become warmer in spring and summer, although reduced growth continues in winter (Browne, 1978; Jokinen et al., 1982).

The lifespan of the female banded mysterysnails is typically between 28–48 months, while males live between 18–36 months (Jokinen et al., 1982; Lee et al., 2002). The group is sexually dimorphic with females growing larger and faster than males, and reproductive females usually larger than 16 mm (Browne, 1978; Buckley, 1986).

Breeding takes place in the spring (Pace and Szuch, 1985). It is dioecious (distinctly male or female) and ovoviviparous, with females laying eggs singly in albumen-filled capsules and brooding them for 9-10 months; this species is one of very few gastropods to give birth to live young (Browne, 1978; Jokinen et al., 1982; Lee et al. 2002; Rivest and Vanderpool, 1986).  Fecundity ranges from  4-81 young per female, but on average, is closer to 11 young per female (Jokinen, 1992; Vail, 1978). Females can brood more than one clutch of young at a time and the number of young in one brood is positively related to the size of the female (Vail, 1977). Some populations are known to reach sexual maturity within one or two years and reproduce iteroparously (more than once in life), while other populations have been known to breed semelparously (breed only once in life), not reaching sexual maturity until year three of life before dying (Dillon et al., 2006). 

Viviparus georgianus is known to be a facultative, or even obligate, filter-feeding detritivore (Browne, 1978; Lee et al., 2002). This species grazes on diatom clusters found on silt and mud substrates, but may require the ingestion of some grit to break down algae (Duch, 1976). With a variable diet, it will readily consume a herbivorous diet of algae and diatoms, but will also consume fish eggs (Duch, 1976; Eckblad and Shealy, 1972; Jokinen et al., 1982; Lee et al. 2002; Mackie et al., 1980).

Various fish and bird species are known to feed on the snail (Eckblad and Shealy, 1972; Smith, 2007).

This species is known to be the intermediate host for trematodes and has, as a result, been involved in spreading parasites to aquatic birds, resulting in large avian die-offs. In 2007, over 3,000 scaup and coots died in a Northern Wisconsin lake as a result of ingesting the infected, non-native snails, with many more birds unable to fly because of the infection. (Smith, 2007).

This species has been documented in high densities where present, and to be more successful in the north, further from its known native range (Dillon et al., 2006). It is often the dominant member of the macrofauna in its trophic level, both in number and function (Browne, 1978).

Because some populations of the banded mysterysnail are semelparous (dying off after one breeding event), this can create a large concentration of dead snails in habitats and leave behind significant shell debris (Dillon et al., 2006).

Using allozyme data, Katoh and Foltz (1994) found that Viviparus georgianus is actually a species complex; speciation has occurred within the group in the southeastern United States due to the separation of populations by large rivers that act as barriers for dispersal. Three distinct species were found to be in the Georgia-Florida drainages, each grouping by drainage: V. georgianus formed a western group in the Choctawhatchee and Apalachicola River Drainages, V. limi formed a central group in the Ochlockonee River Drainage and southwestern Georgia, while V. goodrichi was found to be present in the most eastern rivers extending into the Florida Peninsula. The genetic identities of some populations remain undetermined, such as those of the Altamaha, Mississippi and St. Lawrence River drainages, and are therefore named as part of the V. georgianus species complex (Katoh and Foltz 1994). A later genetic study found populations introduced in New York to group with the western complex, Viviparus georginaus (David et al., 2017).

Because it is a filter-feeding detritivore, Viviparus georgianus is a bioindicator of sediment contamination by oil and fertilizer, because growth, survival and histology are significantly affected by ingestion of contaminated sediments (Browne, 1978; Lee et al., 2002).

This species’ migration, which typically results in individuals burrowing under mud during the fall and winter months, has led to an underrepresentation of the species during sampling (Pace and Szuch, 1985).