Vt. Fish & Wildlife wants bear teeth from hunters

 http://www.wcax.com/story/23915112/vt-fish-wildlife-wants-bear-teeth-from-hunters

MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) - Vermont wildlife officials are asking bear hunters to perform a little dentistry on their prey.

The Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department wants bear hunters to contribute a tooth from their kill to a study on the state's bear population.

Envelopes for sending in the tooth - complete with instructions on which tooth to take - are available at hunter check stations. Officials say the pre-molar tooth they seek is small and easy to loosen with a knife.

The tooth will be used to determine the age of the bear and will assist officials in pegging the status and health of the bear population.

The late bear hunting season begins Nov. 16 and runs through Nov. 24.

Vermont has an estimated 6,000 bears.