Murrysville's PixController to be featured on National Geographic's 'Earth Live'
National Geographic is pitching its latest endeavor as “the Super Bowl or Olympics of the natural world.”
“Earth Live” on July 9 will collect live-camera feeds from all over the world to show nature in real time. Two of those cameras will be streaming video from Murrysville.
“We see a deer and we think, ‘No big deal.' But a lot of people have never seen that before,” said Bill Powers, president and CEO of Murrysville-based PixController, whose live wildlife feeds will contribute to the show.
Powers said he received a call from a British production team that had seen PixController's camera feeds.
“They picked two cams from us, and they kind of moved us up the line because we have a lot of activity there,” he said.
PixController's cameras have attracted local attention for years, particularly those streaming nesting bald eagles in Hays, where they've captured video of eaglets hatching.
Shots planned for the show include 20 million Mexican free-tailed bats streaming out of Bracken Cave in San Antonio; 15,000 flamingoes at a breeding colony in Yucatan, Mexico; beluga whale breeding grounds in Churchill, Manitoba, Canada; and the woods of rural Murrysville, among others.
Some of the world's top wildlife cinematographers will contribute to the broadcast, shooting hyenas in their natural habitat and langur monkeys in India.
In Murrysville, Powers said he will adjust the timed feeders near the cameras — which are stationed on his 100-acre property — to try to bring as many animals as possible into the frame during the two-hour time window when the program will air.
“We've had a female raccoon with babies, and they come in every night,” he said. “If we can get that to happen that night, I think it'll be a real big hit.”
“Earth Live” will air from 8 to 10 p.m. July 9 on the National Geographic and Nat Geo Wild channels.
Patrick Varine is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 724-850-2862, pvarine@tribweb.com or via Twitter @MurrysvilleStar.
