BLACKCAP
The blackcap is one of the more common warblers and an easy one to recognize. They have mainly olive-grey upperparts and pale grey underparts. Both sexes have a neat coloured cap on their heads, black on the male and reddish brown on the female. Blackcaps are 130mm long with a 200 to 230mm wingspan. The blackcap can mostly be found where there is thick undergrowth or bushy woodland. They can also be found in parks, large gardens and overgrown hedges. They prefer mature deciduous woodland with good scrub cover for breeding.
A male attracts a female to his territory through song and a display involving raising the black crown feathers, fanning his tail, slow wing beats and a short flapping flight. If successful, the male builds one or more simple nests, near his song perch. The female either chooses one or a new nest is built, this time by her (“if you don't like it, make it yourself”). The nest is a neat cup with roots, stems and grasses, lined with fine materials, like hair. 4 to 6 eggs are laid and are incubated for 11 days, by both parents.
