Wild bear populations around the world are seriously threatened by poaching, pollution, and disappearing forests, according to a World Wildlife Fund report released yesterday. In Russia, home of the world’s largest brown bear population, poaching for hides and gallbladders has increased dramatically in the last decade, and poaching is rampant in China and southeast Asia. Logging in Indonesia and the U.S. have also taken their tolls on bears. The polar bear, though it still lives throughout its traditional range, is being harmed by persistent organic pollutants and climate change.
