OUNCE

Ounce (snow leopard) also called Snow Leopard (Leo uncia), long-haired cat, family Felidae, grouped with the lion, tiger, and others as one of the big, or roaring, cats. The ounce inhabits the mountains of central Asia and the Indian subcontinent, ranging from an elevation of about 1,800 m (about 6,000 feet) in the winter to about 5,500 m (18,000 feet) in the summer. Its soft coat, consisting of a dense, insulating undercoat and a thick outercoat of hairs about 5 cm (2 inches) long, is pale grayish with dark rosettes and a dark streak along the spine. The underparts, on which the fur may be 10 cm (4 inches) long, are uniformly whitish. The ounce attains a length of about 2.1 m (7 feet) including the 0.9-metre- (3-foot-) long tail; it stands about 0.6 m (2 feet) high at the shoulder and weighs 2341 kg (5090 pounds). It hunts at night and preys on various animals, such as marmots, wild sheep, and domestic livestock. Its litters of two to four young are born after a gestation period of approximately 93 days. The ounce has often been placed, with the other big cats, in the genus Panthera. Because of certain of its skeletal features, it has also been separated by some authorities as the sole member of the genus Uncia. The ounce is listed as an endangered species in the Red Data Book. unit of weight in the avoirdupois system, equal to 1/16 pound (437 1/2 grains), and in the troy and apothecaries' systems, equal to 480 grains, or 1/12 pound. The avoirdupois ounce is equal to 28.35 grams. As a unit of volume, the fluid ounce is equal to 1/16 of a pint, or 29.57 millilitres, in the U.S. Customary System and to 1/20 of a pint, or 28.41 millilitres, in the British Imperial System. As a unit of weight, the ounce derives from the Roman uncia (meaning twelfth part), which was 1/12 of a Roman foot. The standard or physical embodiment of the Roman foot, a copper bar, constituted the Roman pound standard and was divided along its length into 12 equal parts, called unciae. Thus, uncia designated both a unit of weight and one of length and is the source of the modern terms inch and ounce.