BIONESS (Bedford Institute of Oceanography Net and Environmental Sampling System), a new multiple-net zooplankton and micronekton sampler, uses a new design concept with the nets arranged horizontally rather than vertically as in earlier multiple-net samplers. Ten 1.0-m2 nets open sequentially and are towed at 3 knots on a conductor cable that transmits and receives information between the ship and sampler. On the sampler are sensors for temperature, conductivity, depth, illumination, pitch, roll and yaw, and net closure together with internal and external flowmeters and a 35-mm camera equipped with a strobe light. This system can collect biological samples and environmental data simultaneously and photograph animals in front of the sampler.Key words: samplers, zooplankton, micronekton, instrumentation, photography, data collection, design