It is monotypic, being represented by the single species, Scythrophrys sawayae, commonly known as the Banhado frog, after its type locality.

[1] This species was first described in 1953 by the American herpetologist Doris Mable Cochran whose research was focused on the herpetofauna of the West Indies and South America.

When disturbed, it adopts a defensive posture, thrusting its limbs stiffly outwards, thereby making itself appear larger than it actually is.

[5] In this posture and in its resemblance to a dead leaf, it is similar to Proceratophrys boiei, another frog found on the floor of Brazil's rain forests.

[5] The Banhado frog is endemic to the Serra do Mar, a series of mountain ranges in southeastern Brazil, in the states of Paraná and Santa Catarina.