name < Species index > Nestegis cunninghamii
This article was published in the Tararua Tramper December 2025
December in the hills with Michele Dickson and Chris Horne
Chiloglottis cornuta
Green bird orchid, ant orchid
Origin of the botanical name - Chiloglottis comes from the Greek words meaning lip and tongue – referring to the tongue-shaped lip; cornuta comes from the Latin word meaning ‘bearing horns’ – referring to parts of the flower. This species is possibly the only indigenous Chiloglottis in New Zealand, with some uncertainty about the other three or four vagrant species present. All are found in Australia.
Distribution - Chiloglottis cornuta is indigenous to New Zealand. A common species, it is found in moist, semi-shaded places in lowland to montane indigenous forest and bush. Often found in pine forests. In New Zealand it occurs on Te Ika a Māui / North Island, Te Waipounamu / South Island, Rakiura / Stewart Island, Rekohu / Chatham Island, Antipodes Islands, Auckland Island and Campbell Island.
Growth habit and reproduction - Chiloglottis cornuta is a glabrous, terrestrial herb forming colonies from underground ovoid tubers. When flowering, green bird orchid is 40 – 100 mm tall. It has two leaves, occasionally three, green, ground-hugging, oblong to elliptic, pointed, and close to each other but angled in opposite directions. The leaves are 30–100 × 10–30 mm on very short petioles. There is usually one flower, sometimes two wedged between or just above the leaves. Two of the petal-like flower parts are much wider than the other two linear, forward- pointing ones. The labellum/lip has a cluster of globular, large green or reddish brown calli / protuberances in a distinct pattern on its surface. The lip margins are smooth. As the flower ripens into a capsule, the stalk and its enveloping sheath elongates considerably. Flowering is from September–May, and fruiting October–July.
Uses - We have been unable to find any uses for green bird orchid. Where to find Chiloglottis cornuta orchid? - Look for it in Ōtari-Wilton’s Bush, Huntleigh Park, Khandallah Park, Hutt Valley, East Harbour Regional Park, Tararua, Remutaka and Aorangi Ranges and in the Wellington area's regional parks and native forest reserves.