Do animals really belong in zoos?

It was, for me, what Henry David Thoreau might call a transcendent moment, when the world suddenly turned still and time seemed to slow.

My wife and I took the kids to my parents’ home in St. Augustine, Fla., for spring break last week. A double-crested cormorant had perched on a fountain in the center of the egg-shaped pond at the back of their house, spreading its wings out to dry. I spotted the black, snake-like bird through a living-room window and called everyone to watch — simply watch — as it sat motionless.

The orange, early-morning sunlight slanted over the pond, which reflected the surrounding red cedars, cabbage palms and Spanish moss-coated live oaks like a mirror. Mist flowed off the water’s surface in spiraling wisps.

The cormorant was alone, which was unusual. Storks, egrets and ibises came and went from the pond throughout the week, tiptoeing along the shoreline in search of easy meals in the shallow water. On occasion, a hawk or raven circled overhead.

There were so many birds flying in and around the pond that it reminded me of an airport.

But this time, there was only one. Then, after a minute or two, the cormorant flapped its wings and flew off, arcing once over the pond before heading toward the wetlands to the south.

Later in the morning, from a patio overlooking the pond, we observed a family of Florida soft-shelled turtles poking their heads above water to chow on water bugs. They were so slow and gentle. But, when startled, they darted into deeper water with remarkable speed.

To me, the pond contrasted sharply with the St. Augustine Alligator Farm and Zoological Park, which we visited last week. After spending so much time watching unfettered birds and turtles, I found the park to be, well, unnatural.

The farm, founded in 1893, is on the National Register of Historic Places and is fully accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. It was immaculate and modern, the handlers were knowledgeable and our kids were so enamored with the abundant wildlife that they raced from exhibit to exhibit.