This is the moment Tuffy a member of what is considered the most intelligent but also one of the most endangered elephant species in the world plays with a giant log in his ‘Forest Yard’ enclosure.

Tuffy is a 37-year-old African savannah elephant (Loxodonta africana) and has been living in the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore since 2007.

Currently, he spends most of his time playing and swimming in his pool in the ‘Forest Yard’ enclosure.

In the video, Tuffy can be seen easily throwing around a large log for over a minute after which he gets bored and moves on to find some other form of entertainment.

The African savanna elephant is the largest living terrestrial animal with fully grown males reaching up to 3.96-metres (13.0-feet) and a weight of up to 10.4 tons (20,800-lbs).

Not only are they physically the largest animals on land they also have the largest brains and are as a result considered to be one of the most intelligent animal species on the planet.

Tuffy’s species can be found in 37 different African countries but a combination of the destruction of their habitats and poaching for their ivory has led to a rapid decline in the number of African savanna elephants in the wild.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has listed the species on its ‘Red list’ meaning they are considered endangered with a high probability of going extinct in the near future.

Tuffy is one of four elephants at The Maryland Zoo and all are African elephants of the savannah type.

In March 2007, the Zoo celebrated the first elephant birth in its 132-year history. “Samson,” a male calf, was born to “Felix,” one of 2 adult females in the Zoo’s herd. “Anna” is the other adult female, and “Tuffy” is the adult bull.

All the elephants can be seen on exhibit in the Zoo’s African Journey area.