Allen said

I can't say as I have ever seen laying workers evolve in a wintering hive in the North.  Bees just either die or leave.  The bees do stay if the failure slow or is late in the winter, and the hives will be found apparently queenless in spring.

From time to time in fall and winter, we just find empty hives.  No brood, maybe a recent queen cell cut open, ofen feed is on hand, but no bees, dead or alive.  I'd say maybe one or two per hundred is not unusual.

Dave, Don, Bill... any other cold country beekeepers care to comment?

Agree with first statement
Maybe because I have had usually <20 hives I have not seen
absconds/barren hives "before" (3 yrs ago)  Bees since '78
Usually half the bees stay if Queenless, may even over winter 

And dead-outs in spring will get mouldy if you don't clean them out
but not these days because there is nothing to clean out

Barren hive = abandoned, no bees, no brood, very few corpses
Half honey or more left behind
I don't think I have seen this in the 25 years "before"
Now, this is common (in dead-outs)

dave

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