Flowers are green-white with a long twisting/coiled labellum which may be tinged with a variety of colours; white, green, purple or brown.

[3] This species is found across Europe, from Spain eastwards to the Balkans and in western North Africa.

Examples of sites for this species include among sand dunes at Sandwich Bay in the United Kingdom, Massif Central in France and the Mugello Valley in Italy.

[4] Himantoglossum hircinum is a food-deceptive orchid species, meaning the flowers generally provide no nectar to their pollinators.

[6] It has been suggested that H. hircinum is a mycorrhizal generalist, though some have questioned this, due to the species' limited distribution, and the issue remains unresolved.