Becky Nicosia of Baton Rouge climbed into her 20-foot ladder stand about 2:30 on Oct. 16 and settled in for an afternoon hunt on land she owns in Adams County, Miss. She knew a big buck, nicknamed “Megatron” was using the area, but she hadn’t gotten a shot.
Several does came into view at the edge of her food plot and started browsing.
“I saw a few does and then saw Megatron come out and start walking towards me,” said Nicosia, who shoots a Mathews Chill SDX with a peep sight and one pin. She uses a rangefinder to range shots around her stand and mentally marks her kill zone at 30 yards.
“Megatron got within range, but suddenly turned and started walking away. He looked back for just a second and I let the arrow fly.”
Nicosia shoots Easton Axis arrows tipped with 100-grain Wasp broadheads. Her shot hit home, and the buck ran about 50 yards and piled up.
Sporting 13 points and weighing 185 pounds, the buck was rough-scored at 160 inches or better.
Waiting until the right time
Nicosia has been bowhunting for 30 years and is an expert archer and hunter; people that knew her were not surprised that she passed up this same buck last season. Dead deer don’t grow bigger antlers; that’s something Nicosia and her husband, Donnie, keep in mind while managing their property and deer herd.
“We’ve been watching this buck for three years,” Nicosia said. “We have been putting out Antler Max attractant as a supplemental feeding during the spring and summer. The supplemental feeding with protein supplements really put on the antler growth. We only shoot mature bucks, or cull racks if we see they’re not growing bigger.
“I videoed him last year because he had so much potential,” she said. “He was about a 138-inch 10-point last year, and this year, we estimated that he’d grown into the 160-inch range with 13-points, so we were going to try and harvest him if we got an opportunity.”
Management
When you manage a hunting property for older, mature deer you’ve got to shoot a lot of does, and Nicosia usually shoots a few with her bow each season.
“We manage the property and pick out the ones we want to shoot and the ones we want to let grow,” Nicosia said. “Last year, I saw the buck we named Megatron on my mom’s favorite stand, called Boot’s Hill. I got him on video twice last year feeding in the foot plot and eating acorns.”
Nicosia saw him the second week of bow season, but he got no closer than 50 yards, so she didn’t shoot.
“I have a bow shop and teach archery and sell a few bows,” said Nicosia. “I grew up hunting with my dad, Doc Harvey, and killed my first deer with him in my late 20s. I just love hunting with a bow.”
The post “Lady bowhunter arrows Megatron in Adams County” first appeared on MS-Sportsman.com.
