The species composition and spatial and trophic structure of the macrobenthos were studied in several lagoon ecosystems (Kandalaksha Bay, White Sea). The main changes in the species diversity and trophic structure were observed with regard to the sea level, from the upper littoral to the middle and lower littoral, and then to the sublittoral. The macrobenthic communities of lagoons more strongly protected from the sea (lagoons of Ermolinskaya Inlet and those in the inner part of Kislaya Inlet located near Ershovskoe Lake) were characterized by the most similar species composition and trophic structure in the tidal zone; in contrast, the most pronounced differences in the sublittoral were observed for the macrobenthic communities of the lagoons more exposed and thus more connected to the sea (lagoon ecosystems in the inner part of Kislaya Inlet). As the connection of the lagoon to the sea decreases, the sedimentation rate, the siltation of sediments, and water desalination grow; the diversity of trophic groups decreases accordingly. The number of detritophagous species increases gradually.
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