Calanthe davidii is  one of  the tallest calanthe species and the   tallest of the 6 species occurring in Huanglong. It has, however, the most inconspicuous flowers of any local species. The narrow upright leaves are 30-50 cm high but can reach up to  65 cm in height. The plant occurs scattered in shrub at 1950 m altitude and below. It is usually around 60-80 cm high but can reach a height of up to 120 cm. The 20-30 flowers per stem have a diameter of about 2 cm. They have laterally deflexed sepals and petals and  are  randomly  orientated  along the raceme.

         Flowering: July-August

        剑叶虾脊兰植株是株型最高的虾脊兰之一， 也是黄龙六种虾脊兰中植株最高的种类。而它的花却是黄龙兰花中最不引人注目的一种。剑叶虾脊兰叶片狭窄直立， 高3 0 - 5 0厘米， 有时可达6 5厘米。植株零散生长在海拔在1 9 5 0 m左右的灌丛中，植株高一般6 0 - 8 0厘米，有时可高达1 2 0厘米。每个花茎上着生2 0 - 3 0朵花， 花直径大约2厘米。剑叶虾脊兰的侧萼片和花瓣都侧向朝下弯曲。花沿着总状花序无规则地开放。

        短叶虾脊兰在黄龙只发现了一个很小的种群，分布在海拔1850米的密灌丛中。与其他虾脊兰植物相比， 短叶虾脊兰算相当矮小的种类，高仅有20-30厘米，花直径在3厘米左右。

        花期通常在7月到8月。