The oil can symbol is coming on when i start the car up. What does this mean?

Look in your manual instrument cluster section. You did not specify the year, make or model to determine what it means. If you do not have the manual, google search year, make, model and manual.

You might want to check your fluid levels right now, as red light on dash is not good.

check battery voltage
disconnect battery and reconnect battery
check oil level

It's your oil sensor telling you that either you have low oil or you're getting low oil pressure.

The yellow symbol with a line under it means only to warn you if the engine oil level is low when its running. If its RED sign then this is your low engine oil pressure warning light.

think you will need a mechanic to have a look at the auto choke controls

one of two possibilities: the engine is low on oil, if it has a low oil level sensor. have you checked the oil level on the dipstick? or the engine oil pressure is very low. a tech can do a manual check of the oil pressure. if the oil pressure is low, you have internal engine problems such as worn main bearings or hopefully just the oil pump needs to be replaced.

It's your oil light.

Check your oil light as it's most likely low. Other causes can be a bad sensor, or there's a pressure leak

The negative number means the car should have had it's oil changed that many miles ago. Oil life starts at 100% for new oil & counts down every 10%. At 15% the display will always show, which means it's near time to change the oil.

usersteve83, your oil may have been changed but the timer not reset. Reset the timer as shown...
1. Turn ignition to the "ON" position. (do not start engine)
2. Press SEL/RESET repeatedly until the oil life indicator is displayed.
3. Press & hold the SEL/RESET for about 10 seconds until it blinks then let go of the button.
4. Press the SEL/RESET again for about 5 seconds or until the oil life indicator resets to 100%.

Wrench = Maintenance Minder: Symbol letter & number...
Symbol A - Relace engine oil.
Symbol B - Replace engine oil & filter, Inspect front & rear brakes, Check parking brake adjustment, Visually inpest the tie rods, suspension components,driveshaft boots, brake hoses & line (including ABS), all fluid levels & their conditions, exhaust system, fuel lines & connections.
Symbol 1 - Rotate tires.
Symbol 2 - Replace air cleaner element (dusty conditions every 15K miles) & replace dust & pollen filter (behind glovebox) every 15K miles if mainly dusty or city driving.
Symbol 3 - Replace transmission fluid.
Symbol 4 - Replace spark plugs.
Symbol 5 - Replace engine coolant.

All above are taken from the 2006 Civic EX owner's manual.

Yellow oil can lit means you need to top up the oil. Red oil can means you have lost oil pressure.