Donald K. Price

Professor of Biology
Expertise: Hawaiian Islands, Behavioral genetics, Evolutionary biology

Biography

Donald Price, a biologist and professor within UNLV's College of Sciences, is an expert on the evolution of species and the genetic factors that drive behavioral and physiological processes that allow species to diversify and adapt to their surroundings.

For years before joining UNLV, Price's work was based in Hawaii, which boasts high numbers of endemic species living among the islands' highly variable environments. At UNLV, his laboratory studies animals with wings, plants, and microbes. His work has explored a close relative of the common fruit fly called Hawaiian picture-wing flies (Drosophila), as well as ground beetles and endangered species such as the Hawaiian goose (nene), Hawaiian honeycreeper birds, and the Hawaiian hoary bat.

Price's research has been published in outlets including Ecology and Evolution, Molecular Biology and Evolution, and the American Journal of Botany.

Education

  • Ph.D., Ecology, Ethology and Evolution, University of Illinois

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Donald K. Price In The News

Smithsonian Magazine
Every day, thousands of tourists flock to the Bellagio Hotel & Casino on the Las Vegas Strip to see the “Fountains of Bellagio,” a choreographed show involving light, music and more than 1,000 fountains shooting water up to 460 feet into the air. This week, a rare bird decided to join them.
Las Vegas Review Journal
Tourists circled the Las Vegas Strip’s impressive Fountains of Bellagio on Tuesday, taking selfies against the lush background of the resort. What they didn’t know was that they may have gotten an exclusive photo with Las Vegas’ hottest new celebrity — the yellow-billed loon, a migratory bird that has taken up residence in the property’s crystal blue waters.

Articles Featuring Donald K. Price

Spring Flowers (Becca Schwartz)
Campus News | April 1, 2024

A roundup of the top news stories featuring UNLV students and faculty.

Donald Price
People | October 17, 2016

This biologist advises students to become involved in research to enhance their academic experience.