It should be noted that these marks are not nicks in the wood - you can't feel them with your fingers. They are imperfections in the wood itself and spots where the dye in the laminate didn't quite take somehow. There are more of these marks on other parts of the stock as well.
your correct , those marks are parts of what you would call knots in the woodgrain. being denser , they do not absorb any stains / dyes nearly as well as regular grain wood. those are not burn marks or nicks.
