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Along with contests for the biggest and best-dressed, Peru's second annual celebration of the guinea pig also included a contest for the tastiest.

Brass bands, singers and dancers littered the streets of Lima, the country's capital, to celebrate the festival of the cuy, as the guinea pig is known in the Andes.

While there was a competition for the biggest guinea pig in Peru (the winner was over 3kg) and a fashion show in which the furry animals wore traditional Andean dress such as fedoras and frilly skirts, the crux of the celebrations was the eating.

For the equivalent of £3.50 (€5.20), revellers could feast on a plate of fried, grilled or baked guinea pig, with side helpings of traditional foods such as Andean potatoes and Peruvian corn.

Although tourists may be put off by the culinary aspects of the festival, Peruvians travelled from all over the country to taste the spectacle.

Lima is the biggest city in Peru and lies on the coast by the Bay of Lima in the Pacific Ocean. The festival of the cuy is an annual event held in the summer.

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