Bear Regulations

Attention Bear Hunters – Tooth Submission is Mandatory

DEADLINE

All tooth samples must be submitted or postmarked by February 15, 2026.

Why do I need to submit this information?

Widespread seasons and electronic check in make it impossible for Agency personnel to physically collect enough teeth from harvested bears to monitor population and harvest trends.

How do I collect a tooth?

The upper premolar is the tooth behind the canine (see photo below). Using a knife or screwdriver, push the gum line toward the top of the head exposing more of the tooth. Loosen the tooth with the knife or screwdriver using the canine for leverage. This is an important step, trying to immediately pull with pliers usually results in a broken tooth. Once loose, use pliers to finish the job. Note: the entire tooth, roots included, is needed. View an instructional video on how to correctly remove and submit a bear tooth on YouTube.

Note: Collect both premolars and save 1 in case your first submission is lost in the mail.

Preparing the Tooth

Once you have collected the tooth, fill out the form. Use an 8 x 11 piece of paper and tape the tooth about 2/3 down the page. Then fold the paper is thirds so that the tooth is surrounded by the paper and sitting at the bottom now.

Place that paper and the form with your information into a standard letter envelope and send to:

Bear Data Collection
3030 Wildlife Way
Morristown, TN 37814

New! Bear Tooth Registry

Use this new tool to let us know when you mailed your tooth AND find out the age of your past bear harvests. Go to the TWRA Bear Tooth Registry page, click on the “Bear Tooth Registry” icon, and log in with your TWRA ID number and birthdate.