Instrument: epibenthic sled

An epibenthic sled is a semi-quantitative bottom-sampling device designed to trawl just above the bottom at the sediment water interface (the epibenthic zone). The sled consists of a rectangular steel frame with a mesh net (often more than one) attached to it. Towed along the ocean floor, its weight scrapes into the benthos, collecting any organisms on the surface or in the first few centimeters of sediment. It also collects the organisms in the water column just above the benthos.

Descriptions from WHOI and Census of Marine Life.