An ancient bristlecone pine silently witnesses the White Mountain production crew wrapping up after a day’s work at 12,000 feet.

Studying life on the edge of harsh environments is the focus of the University of California’s White Mountain Research Station, above Bishop in Northern California. “In the Shadow of White Mountain,” which documents what this work is like, makes its UCTV debut on Tuesday, Nov. 23.

South Coast cable viewers of Cox Channel 21, however, will likely have to wait until Sunday, Nov. 28, at 9 p.m. to see the White Mountain documentary and a 10 p.m. film on UCSB’s Coal Oil Point Reserve.

These documentaries are part of Tuesday’s 3.5-hour package of shows that highlight five locations in the UC Natural Reserve System (NRS). Another UCSB-administered reserve included in the UCTV nature package is the Sedgwick Ranch in the Santa Ynez Valley.

The delay for local viewers is due to time changes for UCTV programming at Chan. 21. Now UCTV is cablecast seven days a week from midnight to 6 a.m., and on weekends in the evenings from 7 p.m. to midnight. Chan. 21’s TV log does not identify individual programs in UCTV’s time block, but Sunday nights is usually when Chan. 21 re-runs the “Best of UCTV,” including White Mountain, according to Alison Gang, UCTV program coordinator.

Produced by UC’s NRS, the documentaries, most of which are 30 minutes long, seek to capture the flavor of reserves situated in Southern and Northern California. “Coal Oil Point Reserve” near UCSB, for example, protects a variety of coastal and estuarine habitats and hosts thousands of visiting migratory birds.

“In the Shadow of White Mountain,” featuring narrator Peter Coyote, uses an hour to tell the many stories of a biological field station with both the highest research lab and the highest Internet node in North America. The White Mountain Research Station provides unprecedented access to a host of environmental conditions, animals, and vegetation, and is yielding a vital understanding of change, from physiology to climate, from the oldest known living organism to a short-lived beetle.

For more information on White Mountain, including behind the scenes photos and links to additional resources, visit <www.ucsd.tv/whitemountain>.