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North American grassland birds are one of the fastest and most consistently declining groups of species in the world. Declines are due to habitat conversion, removal of native grazers, brood parasitism, fire suppression, energy development, and other factors. The objective of this study was to identify associations and factors that shape the community of grassland birds in areas occupied by black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludoviciana) and grazed by livestock. The project was conducted on the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in north central South Dakota. The study site is mixed-grass prairie and consisted of four pastures stratified by the proportion of prairie dog occurrence within a pasture. Pastures were stocked with Angus steers to achieve 50% degree of disappearance of vegetation. Bird and vegetation surveys were conducted from 2012-2014 along fixed-width belt transects located both on and off prairie dog colonies. Non-metric multi-dimensional scaling (NMS) was used in the analysis of community data and completed using PC-ORD 6. Distinctive communities of birds and vegetation occurred on and off prairie dog towns. Basal bare ground was the most important habitat variable associated with differing bird communities. Horned larks (Eremophila alpestris), were associated with plant communities with greater basal bare ground. Plant communities associated with increasing maximum live vegetation and visual obstruction had higher observations of grasshopper sparrows (Ammodramus savannarum) and were typical of off-town locations. Bird species such as western meadowlark (Sturnella neglecta) and upland sandpipers (Bartramia longicauda) utilized both on- and off-prairie dog town locations. Our findings demonstrate the importance of maintaining spatial heterogeneity for maintaining diverse and robust bird and plant communities at the landscape scale. Our findings coincide with earlier studies which have found that distinct bird and plant communities exists on and off towns and confirm that these patterns continue to exist in a system used for livestock production.