A scientific study attributed the population crash to the limited food supply in interaction with climatic factors (the winter of 196364 was exceptionally severe in the region).
After exhausting available organic material within a local area, grey goo would experience a population crash in that area, slowing or ending its outward spread.
Possible alterations include adding, disrupting, or modifying genes, including some that reduce reproductive capacity and may cause a population crash.
The populations are especially vulnerable during the years when the prey population crashes, and uncontrolled trapping has almost eradicated two subpopulations.