Echoing some of the same comments already made. Last March the white perch made their run up the James here in Virginia. They signal the start of the season here. It was impossible NOT to catch them, and I had such a blast with them. Had success on purprle, green, and yellow Woolly Buggers (beadhead), red terrestrial patterns (dont know the name), and really just about anything that was flashy and got down in the current. Might be a different story for lake bound perch, but the flashy patterns seemed to draw interest on nearly every cast. So much so, the stripper fisherman were trying to figure out ways NOT to catch them. They absolutely infiltrate the James, then the strippers come, then the shad, then the smallmouth...is it March yet?