The purple martins are arriving for the season.

Franklin Bidinger, who lives in the old school in the village of Clinton, has been tracking the birds’ annual migration for years. Friday he reported spotting two.

“Generally they come in on March 12,” Bidinger said. “So, they’re a couple days early.”

Bidinger used to stage a purple martin festival each spring for the public, inviting people to come see the birds that flock by the dozens to the many purple martin houses he has erected.

But as he grew older, he and his wife stopped doing the festival. Now he keeps chairs out and invites people to drop by whenever they like to sit and see the birds.

“People are welcome here any time,” Bidinger said.

The village of Clinton is on the west side of Clinton Lake. The Bidingers’ old school building is easy to spot once you get there.