There is this insect/arachnid I remember from my childhood in Las Vegas. It had a body about the size of a raisin, only it was quite flat. They were red with black spots (larger than ladybugs, but flatter), and the kids in the neighborhood called them "bloodsuckers" for some reason. (I have no idea if they bit or not.) I don't remember them flying, but I could be wrong about that. What insects were they? Scientific name or common name is fine, anything I can use to find out more info.
posted by ErWenn on Nov 7, 2009 - 13 answers

What is this thing that we found on the beach? [more inside]
posted by shammack on Nov 7, 2009 - 6 answers

What is this tune? [little snip from a french movie]. Thanks in advance.
posted by [@I][:+:][@I] on Nov 5, 2009 - 9 answers

What kind of tree/plant is this? [more inside]
posted by melissasaurus on Oct 18, 2009 - 7 answers

What style of armchair did I buy? Also, what are some good books/websites for answering this kind of question? [more inside]
posted by angels in the architecture on Oct 16, 2009 - 5 answers

What kind of sunglasses are these? Pic [more inside]
posted by gummo on Oct 13, 2009 - 3 answers

Do you know vintage cognac? My Father-in-law was handed down a bottle of, assumably, nice cognac. It was given to his father as a gift from his company in the 1930s. It's been sitting in the basket it was packaged in for years and years and we'd really like to have more information about it. It's a bottle of "Cognac Napoleon, Grande Fine Champagne, Reserve". Pictures of the front label, the mark on the bottle's neck, and the back label. [more inside]
posted by qwip on Oct 8, 2009 - 8 answers

Help identify this song! [more inside]
posted by kitty teeth on Oct 6, 2009 - 8 answers

What is this strange larvae in the puddle outside my dorm? [more inside]
posted by internet!Hannah on Sep 20, 2009 - 9 answers

Can you help me find the origins of a poorly remembered quote? I think it's about research, and it goes something like this: "Half of X is pointless, but you can never know which half".
posted by handee on Sep 8, 2009 - 6 answers

Half remembered short story identification filter: A story in which scientists discover grids underground which might be the cities of beings who live at a greater density, and then at the end scientists from the underground city are looking through the documents, having wiped out humanity accidentally just by coming to the surface.
posted by Artw on Sep 7, 2009 - 5 answers

Stumped! Can you help me ID a tree in my yard? (In the Northwest)? [more inside]
posted by lois1950 on Sep 7, 2009 - 13 answers

Spider identification. Outside my ground floor window a spider has set up shop in a corner. It's an orb weaver, but it does something I've never seen before. [more inside]
posted by sevenless on Sep 3, 2009 - 3 answers

Movie Identification Filter: Can anyone identify this movie based upon my faint recollections? [more inside]
posted by starscream on Aug 30, 2009 - 10 answers

Can you help me identify this berry plant in my backyard? [more inside]
posted by H. Roark on Aug 24, 2009 - 10 answers

Can you help me identify at least the painter of this impressionist painting? [more inside]
posted by FortyT-wo on Aug 9, 2009 - 5 answers

What is this tree with black berries ? [more inside]
posted by llc on Aug 8, 2009 - 9 answers

A friend's recent blog post featured a picture of her father standing next to the ol' family car. She can identify the dad, but not the car. I'd love some help. Here's a link to the picture. Thank you!
posted by apollo on Aug 7, 2009 - 6 answers

I really love the Flickr "ID Please" group, which I originally found here. Are there other services/communities online that allow you to submit a photo (or other media item) for discussion/identification by experts? This particular group tends to focus on identifying types of flora/fauna. [more inside]
posted by k7lim on Jul 27, 2009 - 3 answers

Liar: I found the following picture on my computer. Can someone tell me what film/photo/piece of art this picture comes from? It's such a strange question, I don't even know where to begin!
posted by ashaw on Jul 25, 2009 - 3 answers

A flower question in three parts: 1) what are these flowers: a1; a2; b1; b2? (I included versions w/my hand to show scale, since I have a lot of trouble figuring that with most internet pix) 2) what are other potted flowering plants that will do as well as these in my climate/situation? 3) Help me help myself? Suggestions for plant/flower identification sites. [more inside]
posted by taz on Jul 23, 2009 - 18 answers

I saw a 'new' animal from my balcony this evening and have had no luck finding anything on the net that matches. [more inside]
posted by woodblock100 on Jul 16, 2009 - 23 answers

Please identify this houseplant. This tall and skinny houseplant intrigues me, and I would like to get my own. Who can tell me what it is, and possibly where I would go to get one? (i am a plant newb)
posted by mrgoldenbrown on Jul 13, 2009 - 7 answers

A friend of mine made this mobile for my soon-to-be-born baby's nursery from found objects on hiking trips in several states. One of the dangly(sp?) things is this weird pinwheel shaped fruit. Its about 5" across and as you can see the pods dehisced along the one edge--no seeds were found in the fruit. He thinks he found it either in California or Nevada (or the desert SW). [more inside]
posted by buttercup on Jul 9, 2009 - 3 answers

I own two pieces of jewelry. I want more jewelry like them, and I don't know who designed either of them. [more inside]
posted by jeather on Jun 22, 2009 - 6 answers

I'm having no luck identifying this bird, seen in one of the South Florida wetlands parks. [more inside]
posted by JaredSeth on Jun 19, 2009 - 6 answers

can anyone tell me if there's a way to tell the difference between a determinate vs an indeterminate tomato plant as a seedling? my 3 year old pulled out all of my markers before the seeds had sprouted. i don't want to prune the determinate plants by accident!
posted by cvilleluke on Jun 16, 2009 - 4 answers

I dislike my signature and would like to completely change it. Would this lead to any problems down the road concerning credit cards/legal documents etc.? Does it even matter? [more inside]
posted by shoebox on Jun 9, 2009 - 25 answers

Music ID Filter: Nan-Lo and the Knights - got any info about this group? Trying to find out more about some tracks on an acetate purchased in Southern California. The label says the songs are called "Oo Hun, It's Fun" and "Haunting Blues". [more inside]
posted by chuke on May 28, 2009 - 1 answer

Can anyone identify this tree? [more inside]
posted by jjsonp on May 8, 2009 - 6 answers

Entomologists!!! What kind of bug is this? [more inside]
posted by binocularfight on May 5, 2009 - 13 answers

Help me identify this weird tool I found while metal detecting. [more inside]
posted by cosmicbandito on May 2, 2009 - 42 answers

How is the swine infuenza virus identified? [more inside]
posted by halogen on Apr 29, 2009 - 11 answers

I'm home alone. Except I'm not. Please help me identify my new visitors. [more inside]
posted by xsquared-1 on Apr 28, 2009 - 11 answers

Can anyone identify these cartoons? One about two poor kids who dream of a world made of food, then wake up to a feast in their kitchen. Another about a young couple at a future world/technology expo where they see instant houses, get groomed by robots, and ballroom dance? [more inside]
posted by thebellafonte on Apr 28, 2009 - 6 answers

I need help identifying a set of hand tools. [more inside]
posted by reflecked on Apr 22, 2009 - 12 answers

Plant ID: Are these phlox? [more inside]
posted by bink on Apr 14, 2009 - 3 answers

We've had high winds the last few days, and these tiny purple flowers have been drifting into my yard from parts unknown. I am obsessed with finding out what they are! [more inside]
posted by Orb on Apr 5, 2009 - 4 answers

Plot identification: "X should have never been made a Y, but I pulled some strings to get him through and he got { killed | maimed | lost } while Ying! Oh noes!" [more inside]
posted by 0xFCAF on Apr 2, 2009 - 16 answers

Name-this-song-filter: Soft, acoustic, Augustana-esque song with vague descriptions of lyrics. [more inside]
posted by Phire on Mar 30, 2009 - 3 answers

Blurrybirdidentificationfilter: what raptor is this? [more inside]
posted by Your Time Machine Sucks on Mar 27, 2009 - 11 answers

FlowerFilter: Can you identify this flower? [more inside]
posted by anifinder on Mar 15, 2009 - 8 answers

"What science fiction short story is this?" filter. One story about body switching/different perceptions, and another about mindreading. [more inside]
posted by anthy on Feb 25, 2009 - 10 answers

What story did I read in or around 5th grade? [more inside]
posted by DU on Feb 23, 2009 - 13 answers

Can somebody help me identify this ancient lab equipment? I'm doing some research and have posted two photos to my flickr account, here and here. (PS, I know what the typewriter is!) Thanks!
posted by soulbarn on Feb 9, 2009 - 13 answers

Where is this photo taken? [more inside]
posted by Carillon on Jan 29, 2009 - 6 answers

Can anyone identify this mysterious sea creature? My sister saw four of them swimming at the surface in Boca Raton, FL. They were undulating like squids; when contracted they look like black slugs, when stretched they look like that fellow in the photo. An entire crowd formed to watch, as they were so very weird.
posted by miffed on Jan 22, 2009 - 7 answers

The other day I spotted a very handsome shoulder bag of brown leather with a red stripe. I want to own one just like it. I wasn't able to ask the owner where he got it, but I was able to spot the manufacturer's logo. It looks like a heart, split down the middle into two lobes, and lying on its side. I've drawn a very crude version of it here. It looks faintly familiar to me -- does anyone recognize it? And in general, is there a good resource somewhere for looking up logos?
posted by Eater on Jan 21, 2009 - 7 answers

[Image Identification Filter] Can anyone identify this small sketch? I was told it possibly relates to latin-american supernatural history. [more inside]
posted by dcjd on Jan 12, 2009 - 2 answers

Quick song ID from a TV show... [more inside]
posted by tss on Jan 1, 2009 - 2 answers