Robert Bateman's Ghost of the North is a painting of a great gray owl sitting on an aspen tree and it makes for a very challenging 1000 piece puzzle. "The great gray owl is truly a ghost of the north. It is fleeting and silent. It seems to be the largest of the owls, but it is mostly feathers and weighs much less than the great horned owl. Its wing feathers have downy edges like other owls, making its flight totally silent. The colors are subdued, and the patterns provide excellent camouflage. I wanted to portray this ghostliness in the painting. This is why I gave everything a flat and hazy look. the colors are restrained, and the owl blends perfectly with the tree. The tree is an aspen, one of the typical species of the owl's habitat in the boreal forest." - Robert Bateman