I found these papers through a link trail beginning with a HuffPo article further down the page, but I'm directly linking them here due to relevance. There see

I found these papers through a link trail beginning with a HuffPo article further down the page, but I'm directly linking them here due to relevance. There seem to be multiple studies indicating that 'neonic' pesticides are responsible for large portions of Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) symptomology [1,2,3]. However, your skepticism is not entirely unjust. Other scientists have linked portions of CCD to various factors involved in industrial bee culture, including artificial insemination of queens and lack of biodiversity. [1] - Assessment of the environmental exposure of honeybees to particulate matter containing neonicotinoid insecticides coming from corn coated seeds. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22292570 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22292570 [2] - In situ replication of honey bee colony collapse disorder http://stream.loe.org/images/120406/Lu%20final%20proof.pdf http://stream.loe.org/images/120406/Lu%20final%20proof.pdf [3] - Neonicotinoid Pesticide Reduces Bumble Bee Colony Growth and Queen Production http://www.sciencemag.org/content/336/6079/351 http://www.sciencemag.org/content/336/6079/351