Scientists have described one of nature's most intriguing phenomena: the shrinking of the skull and body of shrews as lean winter months approach and their subsequent regrowth for spring.
This exotic trait of the common shrew, a tiny insect-eating mammal inhabiting central and northern Europe and a large part of Asia, was first noted in the 1940s, but no previous research had studied changes in individual shrews.
The scientists caught, measured and X-rayed shrews near the German village of Moeggingen.