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NATURE: San Diego: America's Wildest City

A pair of bobcats stop for a drink at sunrise in Ramona, Calif.
© Terra Mater Studios GmbH & Day’s Edge Productions
/
PBS
A pair of bobcats stop for a drink at sunrise in Ramona, Calif.

Premieres Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024 at 8 p.m. on KPBS TV / PBS app + Encores Sunday, Nov. 10 at 3 p.m. on KPBS TV and 8 p.m. on KPBS 2 + Thursday, Nov. 14 at 7 p.m. on KPBS 2

San Diego isn’t just America’s Finest City; it’s America’s wildest city. Despite its 3.3 million human residents and an utterly transformed landscape, San Diego County is the most biologically diverse county in America. Witness its hidden wonders in NATURE “San Diego: America’s Wildest City.”

NATURE: Preview of San Diego: America’s Wildest City

San Diego is an oasis at the intersection of hostile worlds: the dividing line between the Mojave Desert to the East and the Pacific Ocean to the West; the Sierra Mountains to the North and Mexican border to the South.

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NATURE: Why Does San Diego's Ocean Glow Blue?

Meet the diverse array of wildlife thriving incongruously in a transformed landscape of manmade wilderness. From the dramatic rituals of grebes and the playful antics of ground squirrels to the thrilling hunts of orcas and the moonlit spawning of grunion, witness nature's resilience and beauty amidst the urban sprawl.

A harbor seal rests on the rocky shores of La Jolla at golden hour. San Diego, Calif.
© Terra Mater Studios GmbH and Day’s Edge Productions
/
PBS
A harbor seal rests on the rocky shores of La Jolla at golden hour. San Diego, Calif.

“The first day I arrived in San Diego and walked to the beach at sunset, I looked out at the ocean and listened to the sound of surf, seagulls, and seals and knew this wonderful place would become my home,” said writer and director Nate Dappen. “What I didn't realize on that day was just how rich this landscape was. I began to explore and was stunned by the diversity of ecosystems here - deserts, mountains, chaparral, and the great Pacific Ocean all within an hour drive. I knew I wanted to create a film that celebrates a different, spectacular side of America's most biodiverse county."

A pod of orcas swim through the glassy waters off of the San Diego Coast.
© Terra Mater Studios GmbH and Day’s Edge Productions
/
PBS
A pod of orcas swim through the glassy waters off of the San Diego Coast.

Watch On Your Schedule: NATURE is available for streaming concurrent with broadcast on all station-branded PBS platforms, including PBS.org and the PBS app, available on iOS, Android, Roku streaming devices, Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV, Samsung Smart TV, Chromecast and VIZIO.

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Credits: A production of The WNET Group, Terra Mater Studios GmbH and Day’s Edge Productions. The documentary is written and produced by Nate Dappen and Neil Losin. For Terra Mater Studios, Ivo Filatsch and Sabine Holzer are executive producers. For NATURE, Fred Kaufman is Executive Producer, Bill Murphy is series producer and Janet Hess is series editor. NATURE is a production of The WNET Group.

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Hummingbirds searching for nectar at sunset in Ramona, Calif.
© Terra Mater Studios GmbH and Day’s Edge Productions
/
PBS
Hummingbirds searching for nectar at sunset in Ramona, Calif.