Tree shrews in Malaysia can’t get enough of their favorite drink - fermented nectar. They guzzle the shrew equivalent of nine glasses of wine a day! The source of their alcoholic feast is the flower buds of the bertam palm tree. Inside the buds, yeast ferments pollen to a frothy brew that can be up to 3.8 percent alcohol. This is the highest alcohol content in a naturally occurring source.

Amazingly, the shrews suffer from none of the typical consequences of imbibing - like loss of coordination and motor skills. Scientists are studying how the tiny mammals, which look like a mix between a squirrel and mouse, can take so much alcohol without any ill effects.

(Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences)

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