About 30 species are known, all confined to Australia except the three following, which are endemic in New Zealand.
| Slender. Leaf solitary, linear, 116—18 in. broad. Scape slender. Flower ¼–⅓ in. diam. Lip 3-lobed | 1. C. minor. |
| Rather stout. Leaf solitary, linear, ⅛–¼ in. broad. Scape stout. Flower ½–1 in. diam. Lip 3-lobed | 2. C. Lyallii. |
| Rather stout. Leaves 2, oblong or lanceolate. Flower ¾ in. diam. Lip undivided | 3. C. bifolia. |
1. C. minor, Hook. f. Fl. Nov. Zel. i. 247, t. 56b.—Stems very slender, 3–10 in. high, rarely more, glandular-pilose with spreading hairs. Leaf from near the base of the stem and always shorter than it, 1–8 in. long, 116–18 broad, very narrow-linear, flat, striate, ciliate or pilose. Flower solitary or rarely 2, pink, about ⅓ in. diam. Sepals subequal, linear or linear-oblong, obtuse or subacute; upper sepal erect; lateral spreading or deflexed. Petals similar to the sepals, spreading. Lip shorter than the sepals, broad, 3-lobed; lateral lobes large, oblong, obtuse, erect, usually marked with transverse purplish bands; middle lobe lanceolate-deltoid, acuminate, reflexed, margins fringed with linear calli; disc with 2 continuous rows of bright-yellow stipitate calli. Column elongate, as long as the lip, incurved, broadly winged. Anther apiculate.—Handb. N.Z. Fl. 267. C. variegata. Col. in Trans. N.Z. Inst. xvii. (1885) 248.
Var. exigua.—Stem shorter and still more slender, almost filiform, 2–4 in. high. Sepals and petals lanceolate, acuminate. Middle lobe of lip with a single marginal gland on each side; disc with 2 rows of calli as in the type. Perhaps a distinct species.
North and South Islands: From the North Cape to Otago, not uncommon. Sea-level to 2000 ft. September–December. Var. exigua: Kaitaia (Mongonui County), R. H. Matthews!
2. C. Lyallii, Hook. f. Fl. Nov. Zel. i. 247.—Rather stout, 4–12 in. high, pilose with long soft hairs. Leaf from near the base of the stem and much shorter than it, ⅛–¼ in. broad, narrow-linear, rather thick, channelled, sparingly pilose on the margins and undersurface. Scape stout, with a sheathing bract about the middle, 1–2-flowered. Flower large, ½–1 in. diam. Upper sepal ⅓–½ in. long, obovate-oblong, erect or incurved, concave; lateral elliptic-oblong. Petals similar to the lateral sepals. Lip about half as long as the lateral sepals, 3-lobed; lateral lobes broad, jagged at the tip, often banded with purple; middle lobe small, recurved; disc with 4 rows of stipitate calli. Column rather long, broadly winged, incurved; anther shortly apiculate.—Handb. N.Z. Fl. 267.
South Island, Stewart Island, Auckland Islands.—Not uncommon in subalpine localities. Usually from 2500 ft. to 5000 ft., but descends to sea-level in the Auckland Islands. December–January.
A handsome little plant, much more robust than C. minor, and with much larger flowers.
