What is "butterfly orchis"

Orchis \Or"chis\, prop. n.; pl. Orchises. [L., fr. Gr. ? a testicle, the orchis; -- so called from its tubers.]

1. (Bot.) A genus of endogenous plants growing in the North Temperate zone, and consisting of about eighty species. They are perennial herbs growing from a tuber (beside which is usually found the last year's tuber also), and are valued for their showy flowers. See Orchidaceous.

2. (Bot.) Any plant of the same family with the orchis; an orchid.

   Note: The common names, such as bee orchis, fly orchis, butterfly orchis, etc., allude to the peculiar form of the flower.

1. n. Mexican epiphytic orchid having pale green or yellow-green flowers with white purple-veined lip [syn: butterfly orchid, Epidendrum venosum, Encyclia venosa]

2. Mediterranean orchid having usually purple flowers with a fan-shaped spotted or striped rose-red lip [syn: butterfly orchid, Orchis papilionaceae]