"I believe it is because the bees are no
 longer feeding larva and are reabsorbing the vitamins and
 minerals they normally lose which causes them to live
 longer."

This seems to fit well with the fact that queenless summer bees live a whole lot longer than six weeks.  I examined a hive for a fellow a few years ago that went queenless, according to the owner, in early June.  There were a lot of bees left in mid September.  No queen, no brood to feed.

Dick          
   

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