Shrews may grow bigger snouts in winter to cope with cold air, scientists say

The common shrew (pictured) has previously been shown to shrink its body mass and skull size in winter. Photograph: blickwinkel/Alamy

Humans turn to heated blankets and fluffy socks to cope with winter, but long-clawed shrews have a very different adaptation: they increase the size of their snouts.

Researchers have previously discovered that certain small mammals, including the common shrew and European mole, reversibly shrink their body mass, skull size and brain mass in winter, with regrowth seen in the spring – a strategy that has been named Dehnel’s phenomenon.