Learn about killer whales – and Eba the whale dog – on March 12

The Edmonds Waterfront Center welcomes Dr. Deborah Giles, a killer whale scientist with the nonprofit SeaDoc Society, as the featured speaker in Annie Crawley’s Environmental Speaker Series.

The event is Thursday, March 12, with doors opening at 6 p.m. and the presentation at 6:30.

Despite being one of the most intensively studied animal populations on Earth, the Southern Resident Killer Whales (SRKW) continue to decline, even after being listed as endangered for over two decades.

Attendees will also meet Eba the whale dog. Eba is no ordinary canine. Her propensity for high play makes her a great scat sniffing dog and research assistant. After being rescued from the streets of Sacramento, Eba moved to the Salish Sea with Giles. Since 2019, Eba has been a valuable member of the whale scat detection team, helping save the endangered Southern Residents.

Giles will share how cutting-edge, non-invasive science is helping researchers better understand the physiological health – and mounting challenges – facing these iconic whales of the Salish Sea.

Giles' work focuses on translating real-time biological data into actionable knowledge for both the public and policymakers. From on-the-water field research to collaborative conservation science, her research reveals how nutrition, stress, manmade chemicals, and environmental change intersect to influence the survival of Southern Resident killer whales.

Drawing on more than a decade of leadership in whale health monitoring, Giles will provide an overview of SeaDoc Society’s SRKW Health Monitoring Program, including its innovative use of fecal sample analysis, as well as drone-captured breath samples, to assess hormone levels, stress indicators, and overall whale health.

She will also highlight collaborative research projects involving some of the most respected scientists and institutions in marine wildlife conservation – work that, together, paints a near-real-time picture of orca health and informs urgent management decisions aimed at reversing population decline.

About Dr. Deborah Giles

Dr. Deborah Giles is a killer whale scientist with the nonprofit SeaDoc Society and a leading expert on the health and conservation of SRKW. She earned her PhD from the University of California, Davis, in 2014, where her dissertation focused on this federally listed endangered population.

From 2009 to 2021, Giles served as program lead and vessel captain for the University of Washington’s Whale Scat Program, which pioneered the use of a scat-detection dog to locate floating killer whale feces and assess whale health through hormone and physiological analysis. In 2022, the killer whale health assessment program transitioned to the nonprofit Wild Orca, which formally joined forces with SeaDoc Society in 2025.

Giles is a resident scientist and lecturer at the University of Washington’s Friday Harbor Laboratories, where she teaches Marine Mammals of the Salish Sea and Marine Biology. She also serves as a scientific adviser to the Orca Salmon Alliance, a program advisor for Killer Whale Tales, and is a co-founder of the San Juan Island Naturalist Program.

This event is part of Annie Crawley’s Environmental Speaker Series, sponsored by the Port of Edmonds.  The Edmonds Beacon is the media sponsor.

The mission of the Port of Edmonds is to provide value to the community through economic development, waterfront public access, and environmental stewardship. The Port acknowledges the environmental impact of its operations, particularly on the Puget Sound area of the Salish Sea, and is committed to integrating environmental responsibility into all aspects of its work.

Tickets ($7.50) and more information: tinyurl.com/53bhh2v3