The description of Philippe's Ophrys dates back to 1859, but it was initially considered a hybrid of Ophrys scolopax x Ophrys aranifera. The species is rare and was overshadowed for many years before being "rediscovered" by Pierre-Michel Blais, the current cartographer of the Var. It is apparently the rarest endemic ophrys in France, with only a handful of locations known, solely in the southern part of the Var department.