The only thing growing faster than the foliage at Presque Isle State Park is the warbler population.

Little birds in every color are everywhere on the peninsula these days, just in time for the annual Festival of the Birds this Friday through Sunday. Now if only the weather will cooperate.

Saturday was for Palm and Yellow-Rumped warblers.

Sunday was a birding bonanza — Palm and Yellow-Rumped were in abundance, but so were Chestnut-Sided and Yellow warblers, a richly colored American Redstart and striking Black-Throated Blues that made appearances on two distinct slices of the park.

Also observed (among others): Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Great Crested Flycatcher, osprey, Great Blue Heron, Common Loon, Belted Kingfisher and more American Robins and turkey vultures than could be counted.

Dig out the binoculars and spotting scopes and get to the park before the leaves come in. And keep an eye on the Erie Times-News’ Saturday Nature Watch, the Presque Isle Audubon log, the Pennsylvania Birding List and the Presque Isle Bird Banding blog for updates

If you’re not sure what to get the outdoors lover in your life, consider the terrific prints created this year by Erie Times-News graphic reporter Chris Sigmund.

The ninth and final entry in the NWPA Poster Series — black bear — will publish Dec. 26. Chris and the Times-News’ award-winning photographers also have taken on white-tailed deer, wild turkey, ring-necked pheasant, steelhead, pileated woodpecker, snapping turtle, great blue heron wood duck as poster subjects since April.

Laminated posters, on 11×17 bright white stock, are available for $15 each at the Times-News, 205 W. 12th St., between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. weekdays. If you’re interested in knowing more, call (814) 870-1600.

Today’s steelhead fishing report: On the eastside Lake Erie tributaries, Four Mile Creek, Twelve Mile Creek and Sixteen Mile Creek were productive Monday even though all of the tribs were low and clear. Fish were biting a little slow in Twelve and Sixteen, but anglers still were having success. The fish were more scattered in Twenty Mile Creek.

Anglers had mixed success over the weekend, as the eastside creeks were running high Saturday and then low and clear Sunday.

The Erie Times-News carries a steelhead report daily throughout open water season, and a regional fishing report every Friday.

Keith and Rebecca DiLuzio of North East had plenty to be proud of June 19 when their 10-year-old son, Kyle, won the junior division biggest fish award of a walleye tournament on Chautauqua Lake. His 9.54-pound whopper earned him a $25 check.

But that wasn’t the only success story of the weekend.

Keith DiLuzio, who competes on pro bass fishing circuits, finished fourth and won $286 in a bass tournament at Chautauqua. He lost a 6-pound largemouth at the boat that would have given him the victory. And Rebecca, fishing in a bass tournament for the first time, placed 27th out of 56 anglers.

Learn a bit more about the DiLuzios in Scott A. Messenger’s recent story for NWPA Outdoors.

Thanks to Rebecca DiLuzio for the photo.

You might think you’ve seen all Presque Isle State Park’s Multi-Purpose Trail has to offer. But then, you’ve probably never taken a tour by foot with park naturalist Anne DeSarro.

Pick up the Erie Times-News on Sunday, May 22, to get the second offering in the NWPA Outdoors Poster Series.

Graphics reporter Chris Sigmund worked photos from Erie Times-News photographers, a range map, and heron facts into the poster. It follows the first poster in the series, the wood duck, which was published April 25.

To get an 11-inch x 17-inch copy of the poster suitable for framing, watch for the order form in the Erie Times-News starting May 26.

World-class archer Randy Oitker, outdoor photographer Tim Flanigan and award-winning Ducks Unlimited Artist of the Year Gerald Putt have been added to the list of attractions for the Antlers & Anglers Sportsman Showcase June 19-20 at Port Meadville Airport.

Paul Hirosky, the former bass fishing pro from Guys Mills, will be among those making presentations at the showcase.

The Erie Times-News is among the sponsors of the first-ever event, initiated by the Meadville-Western Crawford County Chamber of Commerce.

Tickets will $5 daily and free for children under 12. Ticket sales are scheduled to start May 1 at the Meadville Chamber office, the Titusville Chamber of Commerce, Armstrong Cable, Northwest Savings Bank and the Pennsylvania Visitors Bureau,

The most striking bird you’ve never seen is back in northwestern Pennsylvania.

The wood duck favors quiet, still waters and has found plenty of nesting sites on Presque Isle State Park and at Erie National Wildlife Refuge and Geneva Marsh, among other places.

Erie Times-News graphic reporter Chris Sigmund brings the reclusive woood duck to you on Sunday, April 25, in the first of nine monthly NWPA Outdoors Poster Series entries. Learn more about the birds, including where to see them, in this special clip-and-save page.

Erie Times-News outdoors writer Mike Bleech’s seminar series hits Week 2 on Sunday, March 7, when he tackles crappie fishing.

Mike’s free seminars take place at the lodge at Gander Mountain, 2088 Interchange Road. Be aware: seminars have been moved to 2 p.m.

The upcoming schedule:

March 7: Crappie Fishing
March 14: The Fishing Rod
March 21: Game Fish in Moving Water
March 28: Hunting Black Bears
April 4: Trout Fishing