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They may not be as large or deadly as a Tyrannosaurus Rex, but ancient insects are just as fascinating and tell scientists a lot about the ancient and modern worlds – and even the future of our planet.

A new book showcases the diverse array of fossilised insects, which have been discovered across the globe.

Information about the insects and how they have been painstakingly preserved, has been collated in a colourful book by Dr David Penney and Dr James Jepson.

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A new book showcases the diverse array of fossilised insects, which have been discovered across the globe. Pictured left is an illustration of some of the creepy crawlies during the Cretaceous period between 142 million and 65 million years ago and a mosquito trapped in amber (right)

Like the mosquito in Jurassic Park, many of the hundreds of thousands of specimens of ancient insect have been preserved in amber.

Dr Penney of the University of Manchester has used new methods and cutting-edge technology to study the fossilised specimens.

'Insects are the most diverse group of creatures on the planet today and many of them were around even before the time of the dinosaurs,' he said.

'Bringing together entomology and palaeontology through the study of insect fossils has great potential for revolutionising what we know about both subjects.'

Details of their intricate bodies were brought to life by artist Richard Bizley, who created seven reconstructions of each of the major periods from the Devonian to the Tertiary, between 417 and 2.5million years ago.

To make the animals in his paintings look realistic, Mr Bizley created models using scientific drawings and pictures of fossils. He then photographed them to see how the light behaved.

'When reconstructing fossil insect species, special attention needs to be paid to important diagnostic features, such as the wing venation patterns and the relative lengths of appendage segments,' he said.

'The fact that many fossil insect species are known only from isolated wings posed additional problems.

'This is where the collaboration with experts became very useful and I worked closely with Dr Penney to produce an accurate reconstruction based on the comparative study of both fossil and living insects.'

The artist also revealed that plants can be difficult to paint accurately, as experts are unsure how certain species looked.

'It is rare to get a fossil of a whole plant, so I had to paint according to the best estimation of how they looked, using the evidence available,' he explained.

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Details of the ancient insects' intricate bodies were brought to life by artist Richard Bizley, who created seven reconstructions of each of the major periods from the Devonian to the Teriary, between 419 and 2.5million years ago. Insects of the Carboniferous - 354 million to 290 million years ago - are pictured left and an Orb Weaver Spider of the Jurassic, between 205 million and 142 million years ago (right)

Like the mosquito in Jurassic Park (pictured), many of the hundreds of thousands of specimens of ancient insect have been preserved in amber.

'Fortunately, scientists have learnt enough to provide some good ideas and many living plants are closely related to those that have become extinct.'

While Jurassic Park remains a fantasy for now, Dr Penney believes the book and the film sparked more research on fossil insects.

Dr Penney said: 'This is the first book to merge these two disciplines in an accessible way, using plain and simple language. It is a book for anyone with a passion for palaeontology and/or entomology.'

Fossil Insects, An Introduction to Palaeoentomology by Dr Penney and Mr Jepson will be published at the end of the month.

'When reconstructing fossil insect species, special attention needs to be paid to important diagnostic features, such as the wing venation patterns and the relative lengths of appendage segments,' the artist said. A dragonfly from the Cretaceous period, between 142 million and 65 million years ago is pictured

Dr Penney said: 'This is the first book (pictured left) to merge two disciplines in an accessible way, using plain and simple language. It is a book for anyone with a passion for palaeontology and/or entomology.' It includes many illustrations of the insects alongside dinosaurs, such as these creepy crawlies in the Permian period, between 290 million and 248 million years ago (right)