One of every seven flowering plants on earth is an orchid. Some are incredibly showy whilst others are almost inconspicuous. The Orchidaceae is the second most widely geographically distributed family, after the grasses, yet remains one of the least understood.
This book profile s600 species, representing the remarkable and unexpected diversity and complexity in the taxonomy and phylogeny of these beguiling plants, and the extraordinary means they have evolved in order to ensure the attraction of pollinators. Each species is photographed to capture its detail, and shown life-size, and each is accompanied by text offering a species profile.