BOCA RATON, Fla. -- Six manatees were pushed ashore this morning on a Boca Raton beach, but all of them made their way back to deeper water as the tide rolled back in.

The six animals (pictured) fought the constant bombardment of waves at the shore's edge for hours before half of them slipped back into the ocean. Not long after, the remaining three followed.

Biologists said the five male manatees and one female were showing a typical mating pattern, common during the summer months.

The manatees showed no recent wounds and appeared healthy, said Dr. Kirt Rusenko, a biologist with the city of Boca Raton who was on the scene. He said the were not in any danger.

A crowd of about 50 curious onlookers gathered on the beach to see the creatures.

"A lot of people are running for their cameras," Rusenko said.

Penny Husted, a manatee biologist with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission, said from two to 20 males will follow a female manatee for days, sometimes weeks, until she is receptive.

"She will beach herself in shallow areas to hide her genital regions and to basically rest," Husted said. "It's important that people leave them alone when they do this so she can get the rest that she needs."

Husted said the female will typically return to deeper water once she has rested.

"We don't need to intervene in any way," Husted said.

Lt. Jim Huffstodt, a Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission spokesman, said authorities were told about the beaching around 7 a.m. Biologists said the manatees could have washed ashore overnight.

The manatees beached about half a mile south of the Boca Raton Inlet, near the Whitehall condominium.