A cisticola of tropical African highlands. It occurs in grassy openings and forest edges, often in pairs or small groups, and gives a scratchy, rapidly changing song.
It is about 16 cm long, with a reddish cap and pale and black bands near the tail tip.
It uses montane forest edges, dense grass, shrubland, and high-altitude grassland. It is usually in pairs or small groups and gives a scratchy song that rises and falls quickly.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.