Abstract: From March to October in 2004,observations were made on the breeding ecology of barn swallow (Hirundo rustica) and red-rumped swallow (H.daurica) in Nanchong of Sichuan Province,China,and the characteristics of their nestlings were studied with 16 nests of barn swallow and 14 nests of red-rumped swallow.The two species of swallows were similar in breeding ecology and features.Barn swallow immigrated to Nanchong in mid-February and to the south in mid-September,while red-rumped swallow immigrated to Nanchong after barn swallow and to the south in mid-September.The first brood of barn swallow was laid inearly April,and that of red-rumped swallows was laid in the first ten days of the month.The egg of red-rumped swallow was bigger than that of barn swallow,and the nestling weight of red-rumped swallow after shelling was slightly bigger than that of barn swallow.The accretions of body length,wing length,tail length,morphological organs and body weight of red-rumped swallow nestlings were faster than those of barn swallow nestlings.The growth curve of red-rumped swallow nestlings after interchanging eggs and nestlings was between that of red-rumped swallow and barn swallow.It was proved that interchanging the eggs and nestlings between barn swallow and red-rumped swallow was acceptable.

Key words: Agricultural water use, Compensation, Food trade, Water resource, Policy relevancy