FILE PHOTO OF A COUPLE OF POLAR BEARS PLAYING IN MOSCOWS ZOO, 2002-02-01 (photo)

A reduction caused by global warming in the massive sheets of arctic sea ice that polar bears prowl for prey such as seals could have devastating consequences for the world's largest land predator, a leading conservation group said May 14, 2002. The World Wildlife Fund said in a report that polar bears are facing a series of threats, including large-scale habitat fragmentation, excessive hunting by people and pollution, but pointed to the climate change forecast to occur over the coming decades as the gravest of them all. A couple of polar bears play in Moscow's Zoo in this February 1, 2002 file photo. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin-Files CVI/HB