Lesser kudu kudu and nyala form a clade, and collectively separated from the sister clade 13.8 million years ago. The lesser kudu has 38 diploid chromosomes. However, unlike others in the subfamily Tragelaphinae, the X chromosome and Y chromosome are compound and each is fused with one of two identical autosomes. The lesser kudu is a spiral-horned antelope. The head-and-body length is typically between . Males reach about at the shoulder, while females reach . Males typically weigh and females . The bushy tail is long, white underneath and with a black tip at the end. Distinct signs of sexual dimorphism are
Lesser kudu animal avoids open areas and long grass, preferring shaded areas with short grasses, instead. Found in woodlands and hilly areas, as well, the lesser kudu is generally found at altitudes below ; though they have been recorded at heights about near Mount Kilimanjaro. While individual home ranges of these animals are in size, those of males have an average size of and those of females . The lesser kudu is native to Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda, but it is extinct in Djibouti. Largely confined to the Horn of Africa today, the species historically ranged from Awash