Sylvia melanocephala (Gmelin, 1789).
Length 13-14 cm. The male bird has a velvety black head with distinctive red eye and eye ring; paler below; the chin is greyish-white. The female is dusky brown above, paler brownish below, while the juvenile differs in having a white eye ring. The Sardinian warbler breeds in semi-desert and farmland and bushy arable land, only in North Sinai. Its food is mainly insects but it also eats fruit in autumn and winter. The nest is a compact cup of grass, leaves, and stems, lined with finer grass and some rootlets; the 3-5 eggs are incubated for 12-15 days. This is a locally common breeder in North Sinai and a common winter visitor to El-Fayium and Sinai.
