Many people were shocked and saddened when Harambe the Gorilla was shot to death after a baby fell in his enclosure.

But since the popular primate's premature passing, he has become the focus of a bizarre and often offensive underground viral craze which has seen the internet light up with jokes, memes and short videos.

Thousands of people have spent the past few months creating tasteless jokes about the unfortunate ape’s demise, before sharing them with vast numbers of like-minded people.

Read more: 'STOP POKING FUN AT HARAMBE' Christian preacher pens heartfelt ‘Song for Harambe’ in bid to stop trolls MOCKING tragic gorilla

Not a laughing matter... 17-year-old Harambe was shot dead after a child fell into her cage

This is one of the many Harambe memes being shared across social media

This massively popular meme compared the celebrated silverback to 'legends' like Prince and David Bowie

The sick trend has become so popular that pranks are even popping up in the real world.

Yesterday, spectators yelled "rest in peace Harambe" whilst golfer Jordan Spieth was making a putt in the PGA Championship.

One group of teens even managed to trick Google into thinking it had made a mistake with the name of a street in Willoughby, Ohio, and persuaded the search giant to change it to Harambe Drive.

Harambe Drive appeared on Google Maps after teenagers' audacious prank

Some of the humour was corralled on social media using odd hashtags like #Dicksoutforharambe, a fake campaign which suggested men should wave their penises around to pay tribute to the silverback.

On Reddit, the website which has become a lightning rod for Harambe humour, one person explained the reasoning behind the bizarre craze: "Harambe's death was such an overplayed deal that a lot of Twitter users - and internet users in general - have been making fun of Harambe, turning him into a meme.

"They're ironically mourning his death.

"'Dicks out' is just for his legacy."

George W Bush was also jokingly (and falsely) linked to Harambe's death

As well as calling on upset animal lovers to flash their genitals in sympathy with Harambe, online "jokers" have mocked up several memes which make the astonishing and false claim that Hilary Clinton was involved in the death.

One fake email was doctored to make it look as if was sent by the Presidential candidate.

It said: "Harambe is a huge threat to this campaign.

"I want that gorilla dead by the end of the week."

Another was made to look like a Hilary cable had been released by Wikileaks and simply said: "Murk that f****** ape."

One joker didn't even bother to mock up a message and took to Twitter to write: "It's hypocritical of Hillary to talk about income inequality and compassion while wearing a $12,000 coat made from the skin of Harambe."

A number of Harambe petitions have also been set up during the recent monkey business.

One called upon Universal Studios to change the name of one its rides.

The petitioner wrote: "Many people are still saddened over his death and I believe that renaming Kong: Skull Island to Harambe's Revenge will not only help ease their pain, but also help keep the legacy of Harambe alive and pay tribute to him."

This petition on Change.org calls for a famous American monument to be changed into a Harambe memorial

So why are people laughing at Harambe?

"Memes will flower in the cracks of whatever is circulating on a given social network, and mass outrage, which seizes social media for hours at a time, necessarily provides a fertile ground," wrote technology journalist Brian Feldman.

"What’s surprising is that the outrage over Harambe has subsided, but the memes live on."