Is this for real? Please tell me this is a Onion article.

It should be- that would be hilarious. This is trite and everything that's wrong with humanity.

:::begins squawking and cawing::: We birds aren't going to just take this lying down! This was just supposed to be a photo op!

Seriously though, Professor Bekoff says it best:

“Even if this handsome male were a member of a common species, there was no reason to kill him. It sickens me that this practice continues and I hope more people will work hard to put an end to it right now, before more fascinating animals are killed.”