By far the biggest European genus with currently well over 200 species and the probability that with the current vogue for splitting, this total will exceed 250 in the near future.
This genus is receiving a huge amount of study at present and it's perhaps unsurprising given the botanical fascination engendered by this group of small insect imitating orchids. It is being realised that despite close morphological similarities, minute, apparently insignificant variations between species lead to the attraction of different pollinators, a process which ultimately results in speciation.
Ophrys are predominently a Mediterranean group but can be found as far north as Scandinavia and the Atlas mountains of North Africa in the south.
