These are melon seed crackers. They actually work best on bigger seeds, but the red, anise-flavored watermelon seeds are my favorite. Preparing for the lunar new year means making sure there's a bowl of these around for guests.

To use these crackers, you just put a melon seed in that center, diamond-shaped notch and then squeeze the wings together, like you're working one of those finger exercisers, only with more finesse than strength. The seed's shell gets split at the sides and voila, there's the tender meat. Sure beats shattering seeds with your teeth or just eating the shells because you're too lazy. If you buy a big bag of melon seeds, you might snag a couple of these since they're sometimes thrown in as incentives.

I think they look like bats--doubling the new year's good wishes.  In China, far from Transylvania, the word for bat is fu, a homonym for "good luck." You might see two bats decorating cards, clothing, or housewares—they're bringing wealth, health, virtue, longevity, and death with dignity. Pretty good for a little blind flying mammal.

(Thanks to Robert Wu for sending me these seed crackers all the way from Hong Kong.)

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