The third in a series of occasional profiles of birdwatchers who are from or spend a lot of time in northwestern Pennsylvania.

Michele Rundquist-Franz

Presque Isle Audubon Society President Michele Franz watches a cardinal feeding near the former Stull Interpretive Center at Presque Isle State Park in Erie on Jan. 25. GREG WOHLFORD/Erie Times-News

Age: 49

Family: married to Jim Franz; daughter, Tami, and 2 grandchildren, Emory, 5 and Kayleigh, 2

Lives in: Harborcreek Township

College: Bachelor of Arts in English, Mercyhurst; Master of Arts in Speech Language Pathology, Edinboro

Profession: Speech therapist with Aegis Therapies at Golden Living Center-Walnut Creek

Originally from: Erie

How I got into birding: I was primarily a backyard birder until I moved to Harborcreek and started seeing birds that were new and interesting to me. A friend of mine, Julie Leonard, introduced me to Jerry McWilliams, birding guru/mentor, and his bird identification classes and from there my interest took off.

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The B.A.S.S. Mid Atlantic Divisional Tournament in July on Presque Isle Bay and Lake Erie will feature takeoffs and weigh-ins at Perry Monument in Presque Isle State Park.

Details for the July 21-26 tournament were announced today. Erie was first announced as the tournament host in November.

The public is invited to all takeoffs and weigh-ins. Launches will start at 5:45 a.m. and weigh-ins will take place at 2 p.m. daily

There also will be a Junior Bassmaster divisional July 26.

The tournament features 12-person teams with two juniors and three alternates from each B.A.S.S. Nation state chapter. The top prize is a Skeeter TZX 180 Bass Boat with a Yamaha 150 motor valued at more than $35,000. The Carhartt Big Bass of the tournament will receive a $500 award; the $250 Livingston Lures Leader award goes to the day-two leader.

More than 100 anglers will take part from the region that includes Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey and Delaware. Winners will qualify for the B.A.S.S. Nation National Championship and Bassmaster Junior World Championship events.

The tournament will be streamed live  on www.bassmaster.com.

The second in a series of occasional profiles of birdwatchers who are from or spend a lot of time in northwestern Pennsylvania.

Bonnie Ginader

Bonnie Ginader/Contributed photo

Family: daughter, Aimee Gevirtz, and son, Geoff Ginader. Four grandchildren, one great-granddaughter.

Lives in: Millcreek Township

College: B.S., mathematics, Grove City College

Profession: Realtor^R, Pennington Lines Real Estate.

Originally from: Erie

Favorite bird: Woodcock

Favorite places to bird in northwestern Pennsylvania: Presque Isle State Park, Erie Bluffs State Park, Siegel Marsh, Pymatuning State Park.

Rarest bird I’ve seen: Piping Plover

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The lucky number in the first NWPA Outdoors Deer of the Year contest is 17.

That’s how many points each of the winners’ bucks had: Rob Potter’s Clarion County trophy and Bill Wiltse’s Crawford County non-typical.

Potter, of Erie, received the most votes in online balloting from Dec. 12-31 and earned inaugural Deer of the Year honors in the Erie Times-News/GoErie.com-sponsored contest. He wins a prize pack including a 145-pound Camo Poly Rope by SecureLine; “Steelheader’s Journal,” signed by author John Nagy; four GoErie.com camp mugs; a GoErie.com bottle opener; and a game tag protector donated by James Wolfgang, owner of Wolfgang Products in Saegertown and a contest entrant.

Wiltse, also of Erie, was named the Editor’s Choice winner after a review of the entries. He wins a prize pack including a 110-pound Camo Poly Rope by SecureLine; “Beyond Catch & Release: Exploring the Future of Fly Fishing,” by Paul Guernsey; four GoErie.com camp mugs; a GoErie.com bottle opener; and a Wolfgang game tag protector.

There were 28 photos uploaded, and 98 people registered to vote. The photos were viewed more than 80,000 times during the duration of the contest, and are still available at GoErie.com/deeroftheyear.

For even more images of successful hunters, visit the NWPA Outdoors Hunting and Fishing gallery.

Kirk P. Hulick, left, and his son, Kirk C. Hulick, each shot a deer on family property in Rockdale Township, Crawford County, during the Pennsylvania general hunting season.

Kirk P. Hulick, of Erie, got his 9-point on opening day at 11:30 a.m. He used a .243.

Kirk C. Hulick, also of Erie, got his 185-pound 8-point Dec. 1 at 11 a.m. with his .308.

Vote for the NWPA Outdoors Deer of the Year at goerie.com/deeroftheyear. Voting ends Dec. 31, and the Deer of the Year will be announced Jan. 6 in the Erie Times-News and on www.GoErie.com, along with an Editor’s Choice pick.

You can still submit your deer photo to the GoErie Hunting and Fishing gallery.

Glenn Barthelson Jr., of Erie, shot a crab-claw 10-point buck in the Allegheny National Forest, Forest County.

Barthelson’s deer is among the candidates for the NWPA Outdoors Deer of the Year. Vote for your favorite at goerie.com/deeroftheyear. Voting ends Dec. 31, and the Deer of the Year will be announced Jan. 6 in the Erie Times-News and on www.GoErie.com, along with an Editor’s Choice pick.

You can still submit your deer photo to the GoErie Hunting and Fishing gallery.

Bill Wiltse, of Erie, shot a lifetime buck with  his bow Nov. 5 in Crossingville, Crawford County. Wiltse’s non-typical 17-point had a 24.5-inch antler spread and weighed 172 pounds field dressed. Its left eye was light brown and its right eye dark brown. Wiltse said its preliminary score at Gander Mountain was 147.5.

Wiltse’s is among the trophies that could become the NWPA Outdoors 2012 Deer of the Year.

Enter your deer in the contest at goerie.com/deeroftheyear by Dec. 10 at 11:59 p.m. After a public voting period from Dec. 12-31, the Deer of the Year will be announced Jan. 6 in the Erie Times-News and on www.GoErie.com, along with an Editor’s Choice pick.

Deer legally harvested during any 2012-13 seasons are eligible. If you’ve already submitted a photo to the Times-News or to the GoErie Hunting and Fishing gallery, you’ll need to enter your photo again for contest purposes.

The contest is open only to individuals who are 18 years or older at time of entry. Entrants must have either harvested their deer in the Northwest Region or reside in the Northwest Region and have harvested their deer in Pennsylvania.

Christoper Fanzini, of Erie, shot his first-ever deer on opening day in Warren County.

Christopher Fanzini’s 1st Deer

Rob Potter, of Erie, shot a 17-point deer this season in Clarion County.

Rob Potter of Erie

The 2013 Cabela’s Bassmaster Federation Nation Mid-Atlantic Divisional will take place on Lake Erie July 22-26, 2013, out of Presque Isle State Park.

The Cabela’s Bassmaster 2013 schedule was released Monday.

Teams form each state advance to regional divisionals. The top angler from each state advances to the Cabela’s Bassmaster Federation Nation Championship, which is scheduled to take place in October or November at a site to be determined.