Akito Y. Kawahara is an American and Japanese entomologist, scientist, and advocate of nature education, and the son of the modern conceptual artist On Kawara.

[2] He holds the position of Research Associate at the Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History.

Kawahara's research interests are insect evolution, predator-prey interactions, and genetics.

He has published over 175 peer-reviewed scientific papers, and has received many national and international awards.

[3][4][5] He also conducts research on ultrasound production and hearing in moths and echolocation in bats, which he works on with Dr. Jesse Barber.