Resumo. ABSTRACTWe studied the avifauna composition and its abundance in a rural area of the city of Viamão, in the state ofRio Grande do Sul, southern Brazil. The study area was composed of fields used for cattle breeding and foragricultural activities (20 ha), secondary forest (7 ha), eucalypt plantation (6 ha) andPinussp. plantation(1 ha). Quantitative and qualitative surveys (using line transects) were carried out from May 5 to November20, 2006. Every detected bird (heard or seen) was considered in the analysis. The survey comprised a totalof 80 hours. We recorded 92 species of birds in the study area. Some species were recorded only at thesecondary forest, such asCrypturellus obsoletus,Piculus aurulentus,Sclerurus scansor,Dendrocolaptesplatyrostris,Conopophaga lineata,Myiarchus swainsoni,Chiroxiphia caudataandEuphonia pectoralis,which indicate more selectivity in certain habitats. We emphasize the occurrences ofPiculus aurulentus,an almost endangered species worldwide, andDendrocolaptes platyrostris, which has no previous record inthe region studied. The results show the importance of native forests for the maintenance of more selectivebird species and indicate that new studies are necessary in the area and in adjacent forest fragments, inorder to improve the knowledge about the composition and the abundance of bird species in degradedenvironments.