Herbs, epiphytic, lithophytic, or rarely terrestrial. Rhizome stout, long and creeping, or short, with sheaths along its length. Stems usually pseudobulbous, with a few leaves toward apex, covered by persistent sheathing leaf bases. Leaves distichous, conduplicate, narrowly elliptic, leathery, leaf base tapering below to form a petiole before emerging with leaf sheath that tightly envelops stem. Inflorescences lateral or subterminal, erect, borne from base of pseudobulb or slender stem, with a few medium-sized flowers, peduncle glabrous to densely pubescent; base of inflorescence in some species covered by persistent leaf scales and never developing into a pseudobulb; floral bracts sometimes brightly colored orange or yellow and more conspicuous than flowers. Flowers rather dull in color, usually brownish or greenish yellow. Sepals glabrous, villous or densely stellate-pubescent abaxially; lateral sepals obliquely ovate, base attached to column foot to form an obliquely conic mentum. Petals free, lanceolate to oblanceolate, shorter and smaller than sepals; lip 3-lobed or obscurely 3-lobed, adorned with ridges or a thickened tissue at base of mid-lobe forming a somewhat globose wart. Column short, foot incurved, ca. as long as or shorter than column proper; pollinia 8, equal in size, laterally compressed, clavate, attached to lamellae of caudicles at base.
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