relative.
The species is endemic to Greece and known with certainty from Cephalonia, Ithaca and Zante as well as the Epirus coast. Reports from outside this area were originally thought to relate to
isolated variants of O. ferrum-equinum, but in recent times it as become accepted by most Greek botanists that in fact this was not the case and that O. gottfriediana has a broader range in the country than was first thought.
Although its full range is still not fully established, it has now been recorded from several widely disjunct area's including Mount Hymettus (to the north of Athens), from where these four photograph's were taken.
As already mentioned O. gottfriediana is closely related to O.ferrum-equinum though its not particularly similar, being chiefly distinguished by the strongly recurved lip margins which gives the flower a distinct, albeit slender heart shape appearance, particularly where the lip
is three lobed rather than entire.
This ophrys is decidedly local and usually occurs individually or in small numbers - it can however be rather more numerous in the Ionian islands and especially Cephalonia.
.