I would definitely think small numbers like you are describing could easily just be natural mortality. BG and GSF may live 10 plus years, but that is no guarantee. When I was young, in my lack of knowledge, I originally stocked a pond with just GSF. Of course the initial 30 or so GSF I stocked got huge by GSF standards, one was 12.5" in length and several others were over 10". They were stocked in 1991 and were about 1 year old at that time. By 1995, all but a handful had died. Now, they were competing with bass and BG by this time, so that may have played into it. I think the death of less than 1% of fish is easily attributed to natural causes and is nothing to be alarmed about IMHO...
