In Brazil all small drums which are either played with simple guitar strings or the common snare wires are called caixas. In Rio they nowadays prefer solely instruments with guitar strings in order to produce the  short, dry and very penetrant sound typical for the Rio Samba. 

Caixas with snare wires are commonly played in Maracatu, Samba-Reggae and various other music styles.

» Caixa - purchase advice
» Caixa - correct pronunciation