It is a terrestrial orchid with crowded, above-ground pseudobulbs, two or three leaves and pale yellowish green flowers with dull purple or red markings.

[2][3][4][5] The gonzo orchid was first formally described in 1822 by Louis-Marie Aubert du Petit-Thouars who gave it the name Limodorum pulchrum.

The description was published in Histoire particuliere des plantes Orchidees recueillies sur les trois iles Australes D'Afrique.

[8] The specific epithet (pulchra) is a Latin word meaning "beautiful", "pretty", "fine" or "lovely".

It occurs in Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Madagascar, India, Taiwan, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, New Guinea, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam, the Mascarene Islands, tropical north Queensland and some islands in the western Pacific Ocean.