The species name cayanus refers to Cayenne, the capital of French Guiana, where the pied plover can be found.

It is placed within the family Charadriidae and is the only species placed in the genus Hoploxypterus that was introduced in 1856 by the French naturalist Charles Lucien Bonaparte.

[3] The pied plover was formerly placed in the genus Vanellus but molecular phylogenetic studies have shown that it is not closely related to the other lapwings.

[10] Pied plovers live along the shores of lakes and rivers where there is sand and mud.

[8] They reside in the northern part of South America with their range covering Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana.

It has been observed to move as high as 2600 meters in altitude in Bolivia, possibly due to the wet season pushing it to higher ground.

At Serra da Capivara National Park in Brazil, they have been observed to flock only with members of their own species, not mixing with other waders along the shores.