 Helmet orchids have not often been studied, partly because of their short-lived, inconspicuous flowers but also because the flowers are difficult to preserve as herbarium specimens.Many form clonal colonies but it is not known whether this is a characteristic of all species.Helmet orchids grow in India, South China, Taiwan, the Malay Peninsula, Borneo, the Philippines, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Ponape, Indonesia, New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Australia (including Macquarie Island), New Zealand (including Chatham, Stewart, Auckland and Campbell Islands), Tahiti, Samoa and the Society Islands.