This state's classification carries no date range for the species.
Season remains closed statewide; the Southwest Prairie Chicken Unit (its range) is closed to all prairie-chicken hunting. KDWP states plainly: "The lesser prairie-chicken season remains closed."
Lesser prairie-chicken range in Kansas is confined to the west-central and southwest part of the state (KDWP's Southwest Prairie Chicken Unit), spanning three ecoregions: Short-Grass Prairie/CRP Mosaic, Mixed-Grass Prairie, and Sand Sagebrush Prairie. The species overlaps with greater prairie-chicken range in west-central Kansas, where hybrids have been documented. This is a geography-only answer. The season is currently closed statewide, so no hunting-quality detail applies, but the range itself is a stable, real sub-state distinction.
Two overlapping survey programs track this species, neither with a confirmed 2026 edition: KDWP's own spring lek-count routes (14 within lesser prairie-chicken range, plus 3 overlap routes shared with greater prairie-chicken) and the separate multi-state WAFWA aerial survey (helicopter-based, spring fieldwork through mid-May across KS/OK/TX/NM/CO). WAFWA's own document library lists no report newer than the 2012-2022 edition, posted October 2022, though a January 2026 survey-protocol document confirms the aerial-survey program is still active. Season remains closed statewide regardless of outlook.
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