Crested lark description. Crested lark. The success of stick insects was explained by genes taken from bacteria

For our southern (primarily steppe) agricultural and livestock-raising regions, the crested lark is perhaps the second most famous and revered bird. The range of the Crested Lark is interesting. Firstly, it says that this is a bird of a mild, relatively warm climate. Secondly, that it is mainly steppe bird, although its nesting areas cover not only the steppe zones of Europe and Asia. In the north, the crested lark inhabits all areas of deciduous, broad-leaved and coniferous-deciduous forests, in the south - all areas of the Mediterranean, northern steppe, savannah and desert (including the Sahara Desert) regions of Africa, Arabia, the entire Middle East and Western Asia. It is found throughout almost all of India, Tibet and the Himalayas, northern and desert regions of China, and the Korean Peninsula. The crested lark is clearly not adapted to life in the taiga throughout Siberia and the Far East.

The most important feature of the crested lark, in addition to the intricate song that arouses human sympathy for it, should be recognized as a clearly expressed desire to feed, nest and winter closer to human habitation. Even professional ornithologists, when characterizing the habitats of this bird, begin to list them from roads and roadsides, the outskirts of villages and pastures, pastures, places of mass grazing and settling of livestock, their watering places in dry steppes and deserts. It often nests in plowed fields, in roadside strips overgrown with rare weeds, in dry meadows, steppe areas with sparse and, as a rule, low grass cover of the dry-steppe or even semi-desert type, on steppe slopes in the mountains and even on the outskirts of cities and towns. settlements, in landfills, dry, inconvenient lands, construction and sports sites, railway embankments.

Early (often in March - early April) appearing on nesting sites, often together with the female, the crested lark selects a nesting site and at first strictly guards it. At this time he sings and talks a lot. Unlike other larks, it often sings on the ground. It creaks and squeals a lot, like most other larks. This vocal program often combines elements of a creaky quiet sub-song and a special quiet song, ancient creaking, murmuring and squealing song-calls.

The Crested Lark's song is shorter and simpler than that of many other larks. It is poorer in sounds and especially pure tonal elements. It is less whistling than that of the field lark, some steppe larks and gray larks. The specificity of this song is that its elements are larger than in the song of many other larks, and are not so rich in pure sounds that are perfect in color, which larks usually borrow from other birds with particular eagerness. In order not to offend fans of the crested lark's song, we can say that he has an original, special style in choosing alien sounds: the song is characterized by a special predilection for murmuring notes. These elements clearly predominate in innate song. The ancient murmuring urges and urge-songs are based on them. This lark sings short murmuring songs both in the pre-spring and post-nesting time. They also distinguish the crested lark during the period of real autumn singing and even periodically flaring up, especially in warm weather. sunny days, singing in winter quarters. This winter song can be heard in the south and in most European countries with snowless, warm and sunny winters. It is often very difficult to distinguish between the murmuring calls, short and real songs of this bird. These innate features, apparently, largely determine the directional choice by crested larks of sounds borrowed from other birds and animals.

At the nesting site, the Crested Lark has special network favorite hummocks, tubercles and elevations. Often he starts songs and talk from posts, sits down and sings on bushes, fences and wires. Starting a current flight, and sometimes a song, from a hillock or even from any flat place, it, unlike the skylark and some other larks, usually does not fly high, but flies above the surface of the earth (often above its nesting site), makes a circular flight over it or loop, sometimes returning back or passing the starting point of the flight. Then it rises a little higher and, as if starting a new circle or turn of a spiral, suddenly slides sharply along a steep inclined straight line down to one of its favorite hillocks or observation points. From the ground, the crested lark usually takes off obliquely, its flight over the nesting area is often distinctly wavy, and it rarely describes circles. It often flies a considerable distance from the nest. The landing is usually oblique and sliding. The average duration of song on the ground or in flight is shorter than that of the skylark, lasting no longer than a minute.

During the breeding season (from April to the first days of July), it most often makes 2 clutches. The female, like the skylark, weaves a rather large and loose nest from dry blades of grass, roots and leaves, sometimes with the addition of wool and horsehair. The nest is located in a hole, at the base of a lump of earth or hummock (tubercle), under a bush of grass, wormwood or a small bush. During the construction of the nest, the male usually accompanies the female, singing either special quiet songs (barely audible “murmurs”), or short, usual loud calling songs (or squealing). Sometimes, having heard the song of another lark somewhere, it flies into the air and begins to flow with a regular and loud song. The main call of this lark is a two- or three-syllable whistle.

More often, crested larks, like field larks, nest in separate pairs at a distance of 100-150 m (sometimes more) from each other. The clutch contains 3-5 whitish eggs with dark spots, very similar to skylark eggs, but the spots on them are usually larger. Only the female incubates the clutch. At this time, the male sings and guards the nesting site and the female with the nest. There is reason to believe that by singing while incubating chicks, the male can convey very complex and diverse messages to the female and other birds, as well as mammals (ground squirrels, gerbils and others). This is achieved both through complex (often very subtle, barely perceptible) changes in the song’s own sounds, and through variations in the set and sound of sounds borrowed from other birds and animals. The female incubates the clutch for 12-13 days. The chicks are fed by both parents. The chicks leave the nest after 9-10 days, not yet able to fly. During the first days, the fledglings hide and cleverly hide not far from the nest. The coloring of the chicks, as well as the adult birds themselves, is so perfect that it is sometimes difficult, almost impossible, to see a motionless lark, even under the feet of not only a person, but also a more keen-eyed bird. bird of prey. Young crested larks fly on the 20th day after leaving the nest. But after 2 weeks they behave like real adult birds: they actively search for food and bathe in the dust with pleasure.

The parents feed the chicks mainly with insects and worms, and sometimes with small mollusks. Moreover, in the first days they bring softer food: caterpillars, spiders, small bugs. At this time, the food composition of adult birds already predominates with plant foods - seeds of wild and cultivated plants.

In most of its range, the crested lark is a sedentary or nomadic (migratory only in the northernmost regions) bird. In wintering grounds it lives alone, in pairs (pairs are sometimes constant for 2 years, and sometimes longer), sometimes in flocks or groups. The crested lark overwinters even in fairly northern regions with relatively harsh and snowy winters. In winter, it gravitates toward human settlements, accumulating near roads and on the outskirts of towns and cities. Sometimes whole groups appear and live for a long time in the cities and towns themselves, in landfills, feeding food waste, left by people, and grain scattered along the roads, near stables and barnyards, wintering livestock. In the desert and desert snowless steppes, it accumulates near roads, wells and cattle pens. The bird is usually attracted to stunted semi-desert and desert vegetation, especially rich in seed food. In the northern snowy wintering areas, there have been cases of crested lark spending the night in the snow in frosty weather. In deep snow, this lark often rushes and buries itself, escaping from hawks and merlin.

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Appearance and behavior. Noticeably larger than a sparrow, about . The flight is wavy, uneven, fluttering. Runs well and a lot on the ground. Body length 18–20 cm, wingspan 30–38 cm, weight 30–55 g.

Description. The male and female are colored the same. The coloring, like that of most larks, is protective - the upper part of the body is inconspicuous, light ocher or grayish-brown, with dark brown unclear streaks; the underparts are dirty white, with dark longitudinal streaks on the chest and sides. The rump is without streaks. The flight feathers are gray-brown, with a light border on the outer webs. The two central pairs of tail feathers are gray or brownish-gray, the third, fourth and fifth pairs are dark, black-brown, the fifth pair has buffy-red outer webs, the outer pair of tail feathers is buffy. There is a barely noticeable notch on the tail. Legs pale pink. The beak, compared to other larks, is long and slightly curved down. Seasonal variations in coloration are weak; in birds in the fresh autumn, the upperparts look more uniform, and the streaks on the chest seem less distinct.

In young birds in juvenile plumage, the crest is noticeably shorter, and on the back feathers and wing coverts there are clearly visible light, almost white edges around the dark shaft streaks. It differs from other larks found in Russia by its long, pointed crest, which is clearly visible even when lowered, pressed to the head. The short and wide crest of the skylark is not noticeable when pressed. In flight, it differs from the skylark in the rufous underwings and rufous-buff, rather than white, outer tail feathers, as well as the absence of a light stripe along the rear edge of the wing. In general, compared to the skylark, the coloring is more even, gray and dark, the streaks on the back are less pronounced, and on the chest they are thinner.

Voice. The song is loud and sonorous, a collection of beautiful clear and iridescent whistles, as well as trills similar to those of a skylark. Sings very often on the ground or on low perches, occasionally in flight, describing circles. Call - three-syllable whistle " fi-fu-ee" or " fu-fi-yuyu", in flight and in flocks often uses a short buzzing call " vjjirr" or " vzhizhi».

Distribution, status. Widely distributed from the coast Atlantic Ocean in Spain, Morocco and Libya to the coast Yellow Sea in Korea and Eastern China, north to southern Scandinavia and south to the 6th parallel northern latitude in Africa and the 20th parallel on the Hindustan Peninsula. IN European Russia from the southern and western borders to the north to the Leningrad and Moscow regions, to the east to the Saratov Trans-Volga region and the Orenburg region. In the south of European Russia it is common, in the north it is rare, distributed mosaically, in separate pairs.

The nominative subspecies occurs in most of its range in Russia G. c. cristata, subspecies living in the South Caucasus G. c. caucasica with a slightly lighter, grayish coloration of the upperparts, possibly mixed with the nominotypical subspecies in Dagestan, and the Central Asian subspecies G. c. iwanowi, distinguished by the lightest, yellowish-sandy color of the upper body and the largest size, sometimes flies into the Astrakhan and Orenburg regions. In the south of European Russia it is a sedentary species. During non-breeding times, they roam in the northern parts of the range in small flocks of 10–15 birds; occasionally they are recorded north of the breeding range.

Lifestyle. Inhabits arid landscapes in the steppe and desert zones and depleted habitats in the cultural landscape of the forest zone. In European Russia, nesting is closely related to human habitation. Settles on the outskirts of villages. wastelands, along roads and in places of intensive livestock grazing, in freshly plowed fields. Breeds in separate pairs. The nest is an open bowl in a hole, often under the cover of an earthen mound, a tuft of grass or a small bush; the tray is built from blades of grass, roots, lined with thin blades of grass and other plant material, occasionally with horsehair. The clutch contains 3–7 whitish or cream-colored eggs with abundant dark gray or brown specks and spots, which are often concentrated at the blunt end of the egg. The female incubates the clutch for 10–13 days. Chick with yellowish down, oral cavity pink or red, on the sides of the throat - dark red or purple. The chicks are fed by both parents.

Zhauruk-smyatsyukh (formerly Zhavaranak Chubaty)

The entire territory of Belarus, possibly except the northeast.

Lark family - Alaudidae

The west, center and south of Belarus are inhabited by the type subspecies G. c. cristata, east and southeast - a poorly differentiated form of G. c. tenuirostris.

A small breeding and nomadic wintering species, most numerous in the south of the republic. Apparently, it is not currently found in the north-east of Belarus, although in the first half of the 20th century it nested throughout the territory. However, in the Vitebsk region. the bird was registered only once - on April 18, 2004 in the village of Valki, Vitebsk region. The adult was observed from 19:00 to 19:30. A crested lark fed on the road in the village, moving in short dashes and constantly pecking something from the ground. There is a vacant lot next to the road, with a strip of bushes behind it separating it from the farmland. It is quite possible that this bird’s nesting site was located here, but it is not yet possible to confirm (or deny) this.

Slightly larger than the skylark and similar in plumage color, but darker, the upper side with a predominance of gray tones. A good distinguishing feature is the elongated feathers on the top of the head, forming a pointed crest. Male weight 37-46 g, female 33-44.5 g. Body length (both sexes) 16.5-20.5, wingspan 33-38 cm. Male wing length 10-11 cm, tail 6-7.5 cm, tarsus 2-2.5 cm, beak 1-1.5 cm. Female wing length 9.5-10 cm, tail 5.5-6.5 cm, tarsus 2-2.5 cm, beak 1-1 .5 cm.

Unlike our other larks, it leads a mostly sedentary lifestyle, only making forced migrations in severe, snowy winters. From April to September they stay mainly in the fields, but are rarely seen. They are more common in late autumn (on the side of fields, roads, pastures), and in winter in the vicinity of populated areas. Birds concentrate near livestock buildings, barns, barns, and often on roads with horse-drawn vehicles.

IN very coldy with winds they are found together with common buntings and in major cities. However, at the first thaw they disappear.

Throughout the year, the birds keep in pairs or small flocks of 5-6 individuals.

The male's song is similar to that of the skylark, but is slower and is performed by the bird, usually sitting on some elevation.

Found in populated areas different types, including on the outskirts of large cities. Prefers dry open areas with low sparse herbaceous vegetation. In winter, pairs of Crested Larks can be found feeding on city streets, near bus stops. public transport, on lawns, as well as in villages and small villages. In the spring, these birds move to nesting sites - wastelands, abandoned fields near populated areas, roadsides. Especially often during the nesting period it is found in pastures, wastelands, dry overgrown quarries, abandoned landfills, on the outskirts of fields and new buildings, among ruins.

Occupies nesting areas and builds nests in the second - third ten days of April. Breeds in separate pairs. The nest is usually located on the ground, among sparse vegetation, in a small depression in the soil, on level ground or on the slope of a ditch, hole (on adjacent territories in exceptional cases, nests are placed above the ground - under the thatched roofs of outbuildings, on stacks of straw). The nest is usually quite well hidden due to the fact that the bird builds it near stones, clods of earth, etc. It is in many ways similar to the skylark's nest. Construction material Dry grass stems, roots, narrow leaves, and various plant rags are used. The lining is thin dry blades of grass, horsehair, and occasionally feathers. The outer part sometimes consists of short, thick stems, leaves and spikelets of grass sticking out to the sides. Nest height 6-7 cm, diameter 11-12 cm; tray depth 3-5.5 cm, diameter 6.5-7 cm.

In a full clutch there are 3-5, usually 4-5, occasionally 6 eggs. They are very similar to skylark eggs, but are usually yellowish-brown in color, more rounded and with a more pronounced shine. Their main background is gray-whitish, densely covered with rather large and small spots: deep light gray or gray-violet and superficial olive or gray-brown. Weight 3.5 g, length 23 mm (21-24 mm), diameter 17 mm (16-18 mm).

The bird begins laying eggs in late April - early May. The nesting period lasts until mid-July. There are two broods per year. Only the female incubates for 12-13 days. The chicks leave the nest at the age of 10–12 days; their parents feed them for several days. Broods of the first breeding cycle, which included 2–4 chicks, are found in the second half of May.

Other features of nesting biology, as well as trophic relationships, are similar to those of the skylark.

The number of crested lark in Belarus is estimated at 1–1.5 thousand pairs.

The maximum age recorded in Europe is 11 years 7 months.

Olga Vasilevskaya, Pinsk district (Brest region)

The Crested Lark is a bird with a shrill voice that skillfully imitates the voices of other birds. It is similar to the common skylark, only stockier and wider at the shoulders. He likes to build nests where people live, which is why he is popularly nicknamed “the neighbor.” What do people know about this bird?

general information

The crested lark is from the passerine order, the lark family. There are five subspecies, divided by habitat. Let's say there is a Central Asian, Belarusian, Northern Iranian and the like. But everyone has the same appearance, regardless of where they live.

Appearance

The bird is medium in size. The height of the birds is usually 17-18 cm, weight from 40 to 55 grams. The head decoration is a small crest, which gives the bird its name. When walking, the crest, decorated at the end with long feathers, constantly rises and falls down.

The long beak curves slightly downward. The wings, about 10 cm long, look quite large compared to the body. This creates the appearance that the bird flying high in the sky is quite large. The legs are strong and very strong, entwined with muscles - the lark has to walk a lot and often, looking for food.

The visible plumage is dark brown, but somewhat lighter on the chest and neck area. This color is a necessity and helps to camouflage, hiding in thickets of grass from various kinds of predators. Moreover, he is so good at hiding that he becomes almost invisible.

Behavior

The crested lark, like other members of the family, is not picky. He feels equally good where there are people and in the desert. However, most of them nest either in the steppe zone or where there are meadows, since this is the most optimal habitat.

This bird, living in the southern regions, is sedentary, since the warm, dry climate suits it at any time of the year, and residents of the northern regions, with the onset of cold weather, go to the warm southern regions for the winter. They always return to the same places from which they flew away - larks are tied to the territory in which they live. They can leave and replace it only because of the proliferation of predators or because of lack of food.

Habitats

Prefers open spaces, devoid of trees, but with thickets of low-growing grass, semi-empty and steppe zones. It lives in southern and central European regions, northern Africa, many parts of Asia, northern India, western Chinese provinces and Korea. In the territory former USSR distributed in the southern regions of the European part, Crimea and the Caucasus.

Nutrition

The diet of the crested lark is quite varied. It feeds on everything it can find - both food of plant origin and all kinds of insects. It does not look for food like most birds - in flight, but wanders on the ground. Moving from one place to another, explores earth's crust trying to find something edible.

For example, on a fine sunny day it looks for ants and beetles. With the help of a long beak, it is easy to pull prey out of inaccessible shelters, easily splitting any durable shell. He loves to feast on earthworms, which he searches for in damp, rainy weather. Catches grasshoppers, ants, dragonflies, flies. But before eating this flying prey, he tears off its wings to make the digestion process easier.

From plant food consumes all available plant and cereal seeds. When winter comes, the lark becomes a vegetarian - after all, all insects sleep. The bird finds areas with a small amount of snow and begins to dig up frozen berries, gouging out roots.

Singing and voice

As a rule, the presence of a crested lark is revealed by its melodic voice, second only to the trills of a nightingale - this is a kind of business card by which they recognize it without even seeing it. In addition, the bird performs not only the motives it has invented, but also knows how to imitate the voices of other birds.

It is also important that the lark’s voice serves as its main weapon. When danger approaches, he emits a piercing loud cry, disorienting the attacker. While he comes to his senses, the lark has time to run away or attack. Only this works only once, and an experienced predator does not buy it again.

Mating games

The voice also has another important purpose - with its help, males call females to mate. As soon as spring comes and it gets warm, the birds begin searching for their soulmate. Most often old married couples reunite after finding each other. Crested larks remain faithful to their partner; the union can last more than one year. And young males begin to prove to females that they are better than their competitors.

The meaning of the ongoing battles is who will outsing whom. The males surround the female and dance around, spreading their wings, shaking their tails and stretching their necks. At the same time, they constantly sing, without stopping for a second. The winner is the one who lasted the longest, or the one whom the female preferred.

Nesting and breeding

The nest is built by females, and on the ground, and not in the crowns of trees. For construction, any available material is used: blades of grass, pieces of branches, cobwebs, moss and the like, which are brought by the male.

As a rule, the female makes two clutches per year - the first up to 6 yellowish eggs, the second - 3-4 eggs. Incubation lasts from 10 days to two weeks. The hatched chicks are fed by both parents, fed three to five times a day, bringing animal food - beetles, insects, worms. Birds put food into the gaping beaks of their babies, and the one who opens their beak most often gets more than their nestmates. After 9-10 days, the chicks leave the nest on the ground and begin to look for food on their own. Those who are not good at it are still fed by their parents. After three weeks, the young, grown chicks take wing and fly away from their parents, beginning an independent life.

Enemies

1. The lark usually sings while on the ground or some elevation. But he often sings during flights.
2. It seems that the lark sings endlessly without getting tired. But this is not so - the song lasts about 12-14 minutes, after which the bird needs rest.
3. Larks love to swim in the sand, so their plumage often appears dirty and unkempt.
4. The larks' dislike of trees can be explained simply: the structure of the bird's fingers is such that it is difficult for it to sit on a branch - a long claw grows on the back of the paw, which prevents it from sitting comfortably on a tree.

Video: Crested lark (Galerida cristata)

Description

The Crested Lark is 18 cm long and weighs approximately 45 g. It has invisible coloring, strong, bent beak, medium-length paws, large, wide wings and a crest on the head. The color of the plumage is dark gray with stripes, the underside is white, and reddish in the area of ​​the wings. The tail has a reddish-brown outer edge.

Voice

The calling cry of the crested lark sounds like “trudritrie”, which is also the main motive of singing. It usually sings while sitting on the ground, a stone or a fence and sometimes in flight. The singing is very melodic, the bird even imitates the voices of other birds.

Spreading

The Crested Lark is a broodbird of the southern boreal zone from western and southwestern Europe to Korea and the Yellow Sea. The southern border runs from Senegal and Gambia, Nigeria, Sudan, northern Kenya and the Arabian coast through northeastern India to the lowlands of Nepal. In the northeast of the breeding range, the Crested Lark - migrant, otherwise a sedentary bird. However, very long migrations have been proven for individual individuals.

Nutrition

The crested lark's diet consists of seeds of wild grasses and other plants, and in winter partly from small animals. Young birds need animal food. The animal foods that crested larks feed on include earthworms, small medium-sized beetles, flies, small butterflies, caterpillars and rarely small snails, as well as spiders.

Habitat

Typically, the crested lark prefers open, dry meadows, but is also found along the edges of fields and roads, in industrial areas, ports and cities. Dry and warm areas with low-growing vegetation, mainly on clayey sandy soils, are ideal. At the same time, ongoing soil plowing increasingly limits suitable distribution sites.

Reproduction

The female builds a well-camouflaged nest on the ground, sometimes also on slopes and stone walls. Between April and June she lays 2 to 5 eggs twice, which incubate for 11 to 14 days. The chicks leave the nest 9-11 days after hatching.

Population

The crested lark has experienced several climate-driven range expansions and contractions over recent centuries. Thus the distribution area expanded during the warm periods of the 16th and 18th centuries and contracted again during the cold periods of the 17th century. In the early 20th century, the crested lark benefited from new nesting sites in cities and industrial buildings. Beginning in the 1930s, the population declined dramatically, starting in southeastern Europe across almost all of Europe.

The total population in Europe has declined by a total of 98% since 1980 and is at unfavorable conditions.

Reasons for the decline

Contrary to favorable climatic conditions in the 20th century, the species' range did not expand again. The main reasons are obviously food shortages and changes in habitats. Ruderal and fallow fields are available only to a small extent and for a relatively short period. Today, open spaces, for example in cities, which have been inhabited by crested larks since the beginning of the 20th century, are increasingly landscaped, fertilized and densely planted. Other wet areas are also immediately greened up. Added to this is the intensification Agriculture and landscape compaction with wide, uncultivated field margins. As a consequence, there is a lack of wild grasses and their seeds, important for bird nutrition. At the same time, there is no sufficient assortment of insects during the nesting period.

Security status

The Crested Lark is found as European look birds under the protection of the European Union Wild Birds Directive (German). Richtlinie 79/409/EWG über die Erhaltung der wildlebenden Vogelarten ).

Images

Galerida cristata Chaabi.jpg

Crested Lark (Galerida cristata) at Sultanpur I Picture 118.jpg

Galerida cristata (Marek Szczepanek).jpg

Crested Lark (Galerida cristata) in alarm raises crest..JPG

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Notes

Literature

• Hans-Günther Bauer, Einhard Bezzel und Wolfgang Fiedler (Hrsg): Das Kompendium der Vögel Mitteleuropas: Alles über Biologie, Gefährdung und Schutz. Band 2: Passeriformes - Sperlingsvögel, Aula-Verlag Wiebelsheim, Wiesbaden 2005, ISBN 3-89104-648-0

Links

An excerpt characterizing the Crested Lark

On Pratsenskaya Mountain, in the very place where he fell with the flagpole in his hands, Prince Andrei Bolkonsky lay, bleeding, and, without knowing it, moaned a quiet, pitiful and childish groan.
By evening he stopped moaning and became completely quiet. He didn't know how long his oblivion lasted. Suddenly he felt alive again and suffering from a burning and tearing pain in his head.
“Where is it, this high sky, which I did not know until now and saw today?” was his first thought. “And I didn’t know this suffering either,” he thought. - Yes, I didn’t know anything until now. But where am I?
He began to listen and heard the sounds of approaching horses and the sounds of voices speaking French. He opened his eyes. Above him was again the same high sky with floating clouds rising even higher, through which a blue infinity could be seen. He did not turn his head and did not see those who, judging by the sound of hooves and voices, drove up to him and stopped.
The horsemen who arrived were Napoleon, accompanied by two adjutants. Bonaparte, driving around the battlefield, gave the last orders to strengthen the batteries firing at the Augesta Dam and examined the dead and wounded remaining on the battlefield.
- De beaux hommes! [Beauties!] - said Napoleon, looking at the killed Russian grenadier, who, with his face buried in the ground and the back of his head blackened, was lying on his stomach, throwing one already numb arm far away.
– Les munitions des pieces de position sont epuisees, sire! [There are no more battery charges, Your Majesty!] - said at that time the adjutant, who arrived from the batteries that were firing at Augest.
“Faites avancer celles de la reserve, [Have it brought from the reserves,”] said Napoleon, and, having driven off a few steps, he stopped over Prince Andrei, who was lying on his back with the flagpole thrown next to him (the banner had already been taken by the French, like a trophy) .
“Voila une belle mort, [This is a beautiful death,”] said Napoleon, looking at Bolkonsky.
Prince Andrei realized that this was said about him, and that Napoleon was saying this. He heard the one who said these words called sire. But he heard these words as if he heard the buzzing of a fly. Not only was he not interested in them, but he did not even notice them, and immediately forgot them. His head was burning; he felt that he was emanating blood, and he saw above him the distant, high and eternal sky. He knew that it was Napoleon - his hero, but at that moment Napoleon seemed to him such a small, insignificant person in comparison with what was now happening between his soul and this high, endless sky with clouds running across it. He didn’t care at all at that moment, no matter who stood above him, no matter what they said about him; He was only glad that people were standing over him, and he only wished that these people would help him and return him to life, which seemed so beautiful to him, because he understood it so differently now. He mustered all his strength to move and make some sound. He weakly moved his leg and produced a pitying, weak, painful groan.
- A! “He’s alive,” said Napoleon. - Raise this one young man, ce jeune homme, and take it to the dressing station!
Having said this, Napoleon rode further towards Marshal Lan, who, taking off his hat, smiling and congratulating him on his victory, drove up to the emperor.
Prince Andrei did not remember anything further: he lost consciousness from the terrible pain that was caused to him by being placed on a stretcher, jolts while moving, and probing the wound at the dressing station. He woke up only at the end of the day, when he was united with other Russian wounded and captured officers and carried to the hospital. During this movement he felt somewhat fresher and could look around and even speak.
The first words he heard when he woke up were the words of the French escort officer, who hurriedly said:
- We must stop here: the emperor will pass by now; it will give him pleasure to see these captive gentlemen.
“There are so many prisoners these days, almost the entire Russian army, that he probably got bored with it,” said another officer.
- Well, however! This one, they say, is the commander of the entire guard of Emperor Alexander,” said the first, pointing to a wounded Russian officer in a white cavalry uniform.