We present the results of surveys on seabirds from the Tamoios Ecological Station, a marine protected area on the coast of the state of Rio de Janeiro, south-east Brazil. Four line transects counts were carried out aboard small boats in 28 April 2009 (autumn), 22 September (winter) and 15 December 2010 (spring) and 2 February 2011 (summer). The following seabirds were recorded in the region: Brown Booby Sula leucogaster, Magnificent Frigatebird Fregata magnificens, Neotropic Cormorant Phalacrocorax brasilianus, Kelp Gull Larus dominicanus, South American Tern Sterna hirundinacea, unidentified terns (Sternidae), and Cabot's Tern Thalasseus acuflavidus. Magnificent Frigatebirds and the unidentified terns (Sternidae) were the most abundant birds, while Magnificent Frigatebird and Brown Bobby were the most frequent, occurring respectively in 82,25% and 62,5% of all counts. The higher abundance of birds was recorded during the winter counts. Active nests and chicks of Kelp Gulls Larus dominicanus were observed on a rocky islet (Rochedo de São Pedro) in the study areas during the winter counts. Breeding of Magnificent Frigatebirds was in the winter-spring counts on another rocky islet (Laje Branca). No direct evidence of breeding of terns were recorded in the study area, but the observation of birds with breeding plumage in the winter and spring counts suggests breeding may occur within Tamoios Ecological Station.194478485Alves, V.S., Soares, A.B.A., Couto, G.S., (2004) Aves Marinhas E Aquáticas Das Ilhas Do Litoral Do Estado Do Rio De Janeiro, pp. 83-100. , Em: J. O. Branco (org.). Aves marinhas e insulares brasileiras: bioecologia e conservac ̧ão. Itajaí: UNIVALIAntas, P.T.Z., Status and conservation of seabirds breeding in Brazilian waters (1991) Seabirds Status and Conservation: A Supplement, pp. 141-159. , Em: J. P. Croxall (ed.), Cambridge: International Council for Bird PreservationBarbieri, E., Mendonça, J.T., Seasonal abundance and distribution of Larids at Ilha Comprida (São Paulo State, Brazil) (2008) J. Coast. Res, 24, pp. 70-78Barbieri, E., Pinna, F.V., Distribuição do trinta-réis-real (Thalasseus maximus) durante 2005 no estuário de Cananéia- Iguape-Ilha Comprida (2007) Ornit. Neotrop, 18, pp. 99-110Barbieri, E.P., Variação temporal do trintaréis- de-bico-amarelo (Thalasseus sandvicensis eurygnatha) durante o ano de 2005 no estuário de Cananéia-Iguape-Ilha Comprida (2007) Ornit. Neotrop, 18, pp. 563-572Beale, C.M., Monaghan, P., Modelling the effects of limiting the number of visitors on failure rates of seabird nests (2005) Conserv. Biol, 19, pp. 2015-2019Bege, L.A., Pauli, B.T., As aves nas ilhas Moleques do Sul -Santa Catarina (1988) Assessing Hypothesis About Nesting Site Occupancy Dynamics, , Florianópolis: FATMA. Bled, F.Royle, J. e Cam, E. (in press), EcologyBoersma, P.D., Clark, J.A., Hillgarth, N., Seabird conservation (2001) Biology of Marine Birds, pp. 559-579. , Em: E. A. Schreiber e J. Burger (eds.), Boca Raton: CRC PressBourgeois, K., Vidai, E., Comor, V., Legrand, J., Dromzee, S., Colony-site selection drives management priorities for Yelkouan Shearwater populations (2008) J. Wildl. Manag, 72, pp. 1188-1193Branco, J.O., Reprodução de Sterna hirundinacea Lesson e S. eurygnatha Sauders, no litoral de Santa Catarina, Brasil (2003) Rev. Bras. Zool, 20, pp. 655-659Branco, J.O., Aves marinhas das ilhas de Santa Catarina (2004) Aves Marinhas E Insulares Brasileiras: Bioecologia E Conservação, pp. 15-36. , Em: J. O. Branco (org.), Itajaí: UNIVALICamphuysen, K.C.J., Fox, T.A.D., Leopold, M.M.F., Petersen, I.K., (2004) Towards Standardized Seabirds At Sea Census Techniques In Connection With Environmental Impact Assessments For Offshore Wind Farms In the U.K, , Texel: CowrieCampos, F.P., Paludo, D., Faria, P.J., Martuscelli, P., Aves insulares marinhas, residentes e migratórias do litoral do Estado de São Paulo (2004) Aves Marinhas E Insulares Brasileiras: Bioecologia E Conservação, pp. 57-82. , Em: J. O. Branco (org.), Itajaí: UNIVALICampos, F.R., Campos, F.P., Faria, P.J., Trinta-réis (Sternidae) do Parque Estadual Marinho da Laje de Santos, SP, e notas sobre suas aves (2007) Rev. Bras. Orn, 15, pp. 386-394Coelho, E.P., Alves, V.S., Soneghet, M.L.L., Carvalho, F.S., Levantamento das aves marinhas no percurso Rio de Janeiro-Bahia (Brasil) (1990) Bol. Inst. Oceanogr. S. Paulo, 38, pp. 161-167Costa, H., (1998) Uma Avaliação Da Qualidade Das Águas Costeiras Do Estado Do Rio De Janeiro, , Rio de Janeiro: Fundação de Estudos do MarCreed, J.C., Oliveira, A.E.S., Índice geográfico e descrição dos locais de estudo (2007) Biodiversidade Marinhas Da Baía Da Ilha Grande, pp. 77-107. , Em: J. C. Creed, D. O. Pires e M. A. O. Figueiredo (orgs.), Brasília: Ministério do Meio AmbienteDuffy, D.C., Jackson, S., Diet studies of seabirds: A review methods (1986) Colon. Waterbirds, 9, pp. 1-17Efe, M.A., Aves marinhas nas ilhas do Espírito Santo (2004) Aves Marinhas E Insulares Brasileiras: Bioecologia E Conservação, pp. 101-118. , Em: J. O. Branco (org.), Itajaí: UNIVALIEfe, M.A., Musso, C., Glock, L., Sucesso reprodutivo de Thalasseus sandvicensis eurygnathus no Brasil (2005) Biociências, 13, pp. 63-68Efe, M.A., Nascimento, J.L.X., Nascimento, I.L.S., Musso, C., Distribuição e ecologia reprodutiva de Sterna sandvicensis eurygnatha no Brasil (2000) Melopsittacus, 3, pp. 110-121Efe, M.A., Nascimento, J.L.X., Nascimento, I.L.S., Musso, C., Glock, L., Variações morfológicas e padrões de crescimento de filhotes de Sterna sandvicensis eurygnatha no Brasil (2004) Biociências, 12, pp. 11-19Fasola, M., Canova, L., Nest habitat selection by eight syntopic species of Mediterranean Gulls and Terns (1992) Colon. Waterbirds, 15, pp. 169-178Fedrizzi, C.E., Carlos, C.J., Azevedo, S.M., Seasonal occurrence of Common Sterna hirundo and 'Cayenne' Terns S. sandvicensis eurygnathus in a tropical estuarine complex of northeast Brazil (2009) Seabird, 22, pp. 48-53Frederiksen, M., Jensen, H., Daunt, F., Mavor, R.A., Wanless, S., Differential effects of a local industrial Sand Lance fishery on seabird breeding performance (2008) Ecol. Appl, 18, pp. 701-710Fuchs, E., Predator and anti-predator behavior in a mixed colony of Terns Sterna sp. and Black-Headed Gulls Larus ridibundus with special reference to the Sandwich Tern Sterna sandvicensis (1977) Ornis Scandinav, 8, pp. 17-32Harrison, C.S., Spring distribution of marine birds in the Gulf of Alaska (1982) Condor, 14, pp. 245-254Holm, K.J., Burger, A.E., Foraging behavior and resource partitioning by diving birds during winter in areas of strong tidal currents (2002) Waterbirds, 25, pp. 312-325(2003) Instrução Normativa N o 3, De 27 De Maio De 2003, Do Ministério Do Meio Ambiente, , www.ibama.gov.br/fauna/downloads/lista%20spp.pdf, IBAMA [Instituto Brasileiro do Meio Ambiente e dos Recursos Naturais Renováveis], Lista das Espécies da Fauna Brasileira Ameaçadas de Extinção, acesso em: 10/08/2011Jenouvrier, S., Barbraud, C., Weimerskirch, H., Effects of climate variability on the temporal population dynamics of Southern Fulmars (2003) J. Anim. Ecol, 72, pp. 576-587Kress, S.W., The use of decoys, sound recordings, and gull control for re-establishing a tern colony in Maine (1983) Colon. Waterbirds, 6, pp. 185-196Krul, R., Aves marinhas costeiras do Paraná (2004) Aves Marinhas E Insulares Brasileiras: Bioecologia E Conservação, pp. 37-56. , Em: J. O. Branco (org.), Itajaí: UNIVALIKushlan, J.A., Colonial waterbirds as bioindicators of environmental change (1993) Colon. Waterbirds, 16, pp. 223-251le Bohec, C., Durant, J.M., Gauthier-Clerc, M., Stenseth, N., Park, C., Pradel, Y.-H., Grémillet, R.D., le Maho, Y., King penguin population threatened by Southern Ocean warming (2008) Proc. Nat. Acad. Scien, 105, pp. 2493-2497Lundberg, S., Alerstam, T., Bird migration patterns: Conditions for stable geographical population (1986) J. Theor. Biol, 123, pp. 403-414Moraes, V.S., Krul, R., Aves associadas a ecossistemas de influência marítima no litoral do Paraná (1995) Braz. Arch. Biol. Techn, 38, pp. 121-134Moraes, V.S., Krul, R., Sugestão de um perfil descritivo de comunidades de aves costeiras do Paraná (1999) Est. Biol, 44, pp. 55-72Moraes-Ornellas, V.S., (2010) Aves Marinhas Como Foco De Educação Ambiental, 34, pp. 14-22. , Ed. Amb. AçãoMorris, R.D., Blackpoel, H., Tessier, G.D., Management efforts for the conservation of Common Tern Sterna hirundo colonies in the Great Lakes: Two case histories (1992) Biol. Conserv, 60, pp. 7-14Ostrand, W.D., Drew, G.S., Suryan, R.M., McDonald, L.L., Evaluation of radio-tracking and strip transect methods for determining foraging ranges of Black-Legged Kittiwakes (1998) Condor, 100, pp. 709-718Parrish, J.K., Zador, S.G., Seabirds as indicators: An exploratory analysis of physical forcing in the Pacific Northwest coastal environment (2003) Estuaries, 26, pp. 1044-1057Safina, C.B., Use of sonar and a small boat for studying foraging ecology of seabirds (1988) Colon. Waterbirds, 11, pp. 234-244Schulz-Neto, A., Aves marinhas do Atol das Rocas (2004) Aves Marinhas E Insulares Brasileiras: Bioecologia E Conservação, pp. 169-192. , Em: J. O. Branco (org.), Itajaí: UNIVALIStempniewicz, L., Blachowiak-Samolyk, K., Weslawski, J.M., Impact of climate change on zooplankton communities, seabird populations and arctic terrestrial ecosystem - A scenario (2007) Deep-Sea Res, 2 (54), pp. 2934-2945Tasker, M.L., Jones, P.H., Dixon, T., Blake, B.F., Counting seabirds at sea from ships: A review of methods employed and suggestion for a standardized approach (1984) Auk, 101, pp. 567-577Tenaza, R., Behavior and nesting success relation to nest location in Adelie Penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae) (1971) Condor, 73, pp. 81-92Whitehouse, M.J., Priddle, J., Brandon, M.A., Swanson, C., A comparison of chlorophyll/nutrient dynamics at two survey sites near South Georgia, and the potential role of planktonic nitrogen recycled by land-based predators (1999) Limnol. Oceanogr, 44, pp. 1498-1508Yorio, P., Efe, M.A., Population status of Royal and Cayenne Terns breeding in Argentina and Brazil (2008) Waterbirds, 31, pp. 561-570Yorio, P., Bertelotti, M., Gandini, P., Frere, E., Kelp Gulls Larus dominicanus breeding on the argentine coast: Population status and relationship with coastal management and conservation (1998) Mar. Orn, 26, pp. 11-18