All couples are prone to some off days, and it is perhaps this universality that spurred readers to vote for this photo of a pair of seemingly disgruntled wood ducks as this year’s Readers’ Choice winner in the Images of Edina photo contest.
Edina resident Robert Schwartzbauer captured this feisty feud happening near the pond in his backyard. “I was just trying to get a shot of the ducks,” Schwartzbauer says. “I didn’t realize it looked like they were mad at each other until after.” Schwartzbauer calls photography a lifetime hobby, and has taken a special interest in photographing birds. He often travels down to Matagorda County, Texas, which has one of the highest populations of migratory birds in the country, to take photos.
How we wish we could speak duck and discover the root of this squabble. Was Mr. Duck quacking too much about how good-looking his feathers are? Was Mrs. Duck gobbling up all the best grass? Who’s to say? Lovers: Can’t live without them…and sometimes can’t resist shaking our tail feathers in their direction.
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This image won readers’ choice acclaim in the 2014 Images of Edina photo contest. This year’s entries will be accepted August 1–31, with readers’ choice voting September 10–30, all online at edinamag.com.
