The relative abundance of compact and normal massive early-type galaxies
  and its evolution from redshift z~2 to the present
  We report on the evolution of the number density and size of early-type
galaxies from z~2 to z~0. We select a sample of 563 massive (M>10^{10} Msun),
passively evolving (SSFR<10^{-2} Gyr^{-1}) and morphologically spheroidal
galaxies at 0<z<2.5, using the panchromatic photometry and spectroscopic
redshifts available in the GOODS fields. We combine ACS and WFC3 HST images to
study the morphology of our galaxies in their optical rest-frame in the whole
0<z<2.5 range. We find that throughout the explored redshift range the passive
galaxies selected with our criteria have weak morphological K-correction, with
size being slightly smaller in the optical than in the UV rest-frame (by ~20
and ~10 at z>1.2 and z<1.2, respectively). We measure a significant evolution
of the mass-size relation of early-type galaxies, with the fractional increment
that is almost independent on the stellar mass. Early-type galaxies (ETGs)
formed at z>1 appear to be preferentially small, and the evolution of the
mass-size relation at z<1 is driven by both the continuous size growth of the
compact galaxies and the appearance of new ETGs with large sizes. We also find
that the number density of all passive early-type galaxies increases rapidly,
by a factor of 5, from z~2 to z~1, and then more mildly by another factor of
1.5 from z~1 to z~0. We interpret these results as the evidence that the bulk
of the ETGs are formed at 1<z<3 through a mechanism that leaves very compact
remnants. At z<1 the compact ETGs grow gradually in size, becoming normal size
galaxies, and at the same time new ETGs with normal-large sizes are formed.
