[2][3] All its members are terrestrial plants, hinting at an early branching with Epidendroideae which is largely an epiphytic group.

[4] Neottieae is likely to be the result of a single temperate radiation of epidendroids, although it appears that some lineages in this tribe have crept back into the tropics.

This name refers to the particular shape of the tangled mass of roots of plants in this genus, forming what looks like a bird's “nest”.

[6] The name Neottia was introduced in the botanical nomenclature by the French naturalist and geologist Jean-Étienne Guettard (1715 - 1786) in 1754; while the name for the tribe was proposed by the English botanist John Lindley (1799 - 1865) in the publication "Orchidearum Sceletos" of 1826.

The prevalent biological form of the tribe is rhizome geophyte, they are herbaceous perennials with underground buds.