Pity poor Tara. When she needs to pick her teeth, no little sliver of wood will do. No, she needs something substantial — say, a slice of oak the size of a grown man.

Such is the life of Loxodonta africana, the African elephant. Pachyderm Tara and her pals, Dottie and Kelly, like wood. They prefer it tree-length, as round as a culvert. The trio, some of the stars at Zoo Atlanta, eat its bark, roll the stuff around and give logs the sort of sniffing that only a creature with a 4-foot snoot can accomplish

Alexander Acosta / AJC (ENLARGE)

Dottie and Tara, 25 year old elephants at Zoo Atlanta, play with logs donated to the Zoo by Oakland Cemetery.

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They're in luck. Officials at Oakland Cemetery recently found themselves with a forest of excess wood following the March 14 tornado, which bowled over trees across the historic burial ground. They offered some choice hardwoods to Zoo Atlanta, which dispatched dump trucks to bring the elephants some heavy-weight toys.

Toys? Excuse us. The proper term is "enrichment," the word zoo workers use to describe just about anything that animals use to roll, whack around, chew on or toss. It keeps animals alert, active and happy in their surroundings, according to the experts.

The cemetery was happy to offer the wood to the zoo, said David Moore, executive director of the Historic Oakland Foundation. "If we can add more, we'll be glad to," he said.

A nonprofit organization, the foundation oversees the cemetery's care and restoration, and has been working with state and federal officials following the tornado. The tempest left the 48-acre park littered with trees, some of which have been cut and donated to woodworking artisans. Other trees will be hauled away. And some made the one-mile trip from Oakland to the zoo, where 12 tons of curiosity — each elephant weighs about 4 tons — ambled up, seeking enrichment.

Whump! The oak log landed in the dirt Friday morning at the elephants display. Tara looked pleased with herself for flipping it. Dottie came over and inspected her friend's handiwork. Kelly snuffled around a log that might fit in a fireplace.

Their interest in wood is natural, said Reddrick Warren, who works closely with the ponderous threesome. In the wild, elephants eat bark off trees, ingesting low-calorie nutrients. They also tend to knock them down, helping maintain savannahs where other creatures thrive.

And, perhaps, they shove logs around for the same reason you boot a soccer ball.

"It keeps them busy," said Warren. "It keeps them out of trouble."

It keeps them in good dental health, too. Elephants run through molars like boys run through sneakers. Elephants, who can easily live to be 50 or more, will grow and lose six sets of molars in their lives, said Warren. Chomping on bark keeps their teeth clean and shiny.

Whump! The onetime tree quivered as it landed in the dirt again. It was an enriching moment.