It has a single dark green leaf and up to five reddish brown flowers with darker stripes and a labellum with short, spiky, purplish "hairs".

Calochilus richiae is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber and a single dark green, linear, channelled leaf 150–300 mm (6–10 in) long and 10–13 mm (0.4–0.5 in) wide.

[2][3][4][5] Calochilus richiae was first formally described in 1929 by William Henry Nicholls from a specimen collected near Whroo and the description was published in The Victorian Naturalist.

[6] The specific epithet (richiae) honour Mrs. Edith Rich who discovered the species.

[2][3] This orchid is pollinated by male scoliid wasps from the genus Campsomeris when they attempt to copulate with the labellum.