Habitat
Stands of mature forest in ravines fringed with thickets of Leucosidea and Buddleja, often in areas surrounded by grassland, coastal forests and valley bushveld, and occasionally ferns and shrubs in gardens. From 750 - 1,825 m, occasionally down to 600 m during the winter months.
Bush Blackcap (Sylvia nigricapillus) [XC518898]
by Peter Boesman from Lower riverine plain, Sani Pass road, Mkhomazi Wilderness area, East Griqualand, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa (song)
Bush Blackcap (Sylvia nigricapillus) [XC453384]
by Rick Nuttall from Mbona Private Nature Reserve, Wartburg district, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa (song)
Subspecies
No subspecies.
Affinities unclear. Has been suggested as being an aberrant bulbul (Pycnonotidae), but latest evidence points towards a link with "warbler" genus Sylvia. Further research is required.