The black currawong is generally found in wetter eucalypt forests, dominated by such species as alpine ash (Eucalyptus delegatensis), messmate (E. obliqua), and mountain gum (E. dalrympleana), sometimes with a beech (Nothofagus) understory. It also frequents cool rainforest of beech, king billy pine (Athrotaxis selaginoides). In lowlands it is more restricted to denser forests and moist gullies, while it also occurs in alpine scrubland and heathland at altitude. In dryer more open forest, it is replaced by the clinking currawong, although the two may co-occur in places such as the Central Highlands and Eastern Tiers. Both the Flinders and King island subspecies are found across their respective islands, but prefer more forested habitats there. The black currawong has been recorded in gardens in Hobart in Tasmania's southeast, and around Mount Wellington, on Hobart's outskirts, in winter. Some remained to breed in Hobart in 1994 after a year of severe weather.