The tiny Mr. Twister grub hit the surface with a light pat and I immediately eased it away from the roots of the reeds lining the bank. With a gentle lift of the rod, I teased the yellow lure out into the current and allowed it to swing toward the head of a small pocket. As I lost sight of the grub in the dingy water, a slight twitch of the line signaled all I needed to know. With a snap of the wrist, the four-pound test spinning outfit doubled over and another humpbacked white perch was headed for a quick release.
I love tidal fishing for white perch. It can be as simple as dunking a worm or as complex as working a spinner through the tail end of a tidal pool. It can also be pleasingly productive or frustratingly picky with a ton of recognizance needed just to figure out where the schools are hiding. Only a decade or so ago, white perch could be counted on from late November though mid- spring. That’s no longer the case these days but good innings can still be had by those willing to do some serious prospecting.
STRIPER KIN
Strip a striper of her stripes and what you’ve got is your basic white perch, both in attitude and appearance. From a biological standpoint, Morone saxatilis (stripers) and Morone Americana (white perch) are indeed close cousins, both being members of the family Percichthyidae, which also includes white bass.
The big difference between the perch and striper is, of course, size. Although a striper may push past 50 pounds, a big white perch measures 12 to 14 inches long. While the shape of the fins on a white perch are similar to the striper, the girth of the perch is greatest right behind the head at the beginning of the dorsal fin while the striper’s girth is centered more toward the middle of its length. White perch also offer a bit more variation in color, ranging from basic silver on the flanks and olive on the back to a greenish or even bronze tinge.
Why am I going through such lengths to separate the striper from the perch? Because, in some areas, the two winter-over together and any stripers you catch will need to be returned.
OPTIMUM CONDITIONS
So what do you need to bring the perch up into the brackish waters of tidal creeks and rivers where they can be caught from the bank, kayak or johnboat? Foremost is suitable water temperature with 45 degrees about perfect and five degrees warmer or cooler still in the acceptable range. Next is a rising tide. White perch like to move upriver and patrol the slopes and edges of channels and holes on incoming water. Falling tides force the fish to retreat toward mid-creek and deeper water, usually away from the bank. While the first hour of outgoing water can often be productive, it’s generally no match for the last half on incoming. Often, the best perch spots in tidal creeks are on the deep-water side of bends where the current has gouged the bank. As a rule, the perch prefer areas with slow to moderate current.
In addition to rising tides, suitable water temperature and the proximity of deep water, there is one other major requirement needed to bring the perch around: a strong forage base. White perch are opportunistic predators. By this I mean that they’ll content themselves with feeding on krill, grass shrimp, nymphs, worms or other such trout-type fodder but they’ll flock to a pod of small killies, spearing or even sand eels. Some creeks and canals hold small baitfish throughout the winter; such spots often also hold perch.
GOING LIGHT PROVOKES BITES
White perch are generally small compared to most desirable species of saltwater fish, but taken on light tackle they can be true battlers.
Because of the light, lures and baits used to catch them, and because in most situations you’ll want to cast to the schools, lightweight spinning gear is the most practical approach. I like a four-pound class spinning outfit best as it allows me to toss a 1/32-ounce lure a decent distance and still has enough backbone to turn a big perch that’s headed for a break in the reeds. Figure your usual Trout setups to be ideal for this type of fishing.
Depending on where you fish and the bait used, rigging options for tidal perch do vary. For shallow water fishing in slow currents, simply tie a pre-shelled #6 beak or sproat style hook to the end of your line. If you want, you can add a gloat, 2 to 3 feet above the hook to keep your bait off the muddy bottom. For deep-water action or to deal with faster currents, pinch a split shot or two on the line about 10 inches ahead of the hook.
With either of these rigging options, you can impale either a 2-inch segment of night crawler, a pair of small grass shrimp (live is best but Uncle Josh grass shrimp are nearly as good,) or a small live killie or shiner (3 inches or less in length) hooked through the lips. Any of these baits should be cast out toward productive looking water to set for up to 5 minutes (or allowed to drift with the current as long as practical). At this point, very slowly work the bait back. Make certain to keep your retrieve slow the entire way – and don’t give up early because oftentimes times perch will follow for a fair distance before committing.
One of the truly nice personality traits of the white perch is its willingness to smack lightweight lures. I’ve caught whites on small in-line spinners, tiny Rapalas and Rebels, even on 1/32 – 1/8-ounce spoons, 1-inch crankbaits, small Panther Martin spinners and banana colored Flatfish. By far, though, my most successful lure for white perch fishing has been a 1/32- to 1⁄4-ounce leadhead with a 1- to 2-inch yellow curly tail grub tipped with a 1/2-inch of night crawler. This rig is best worked by casting at a 45-degree angle to the shore, allowing the jig to settle deep, and then lifting it slowly to glides six inches or so above the bottom. Slide the lure three to five feet at a time, allowing it to settle back to the bottom as you take up slack.
When jigging in this fashion, most strikes come toward the end of the glide as the lure settles. On the glide, strikes generally register as a quick peck. As the lure settles, however, you’ll need to watch for the line to twitch slightly, indicating a hit. Strike back with a flick of the wrist and hold on as the perch powers out toward deeper water. Overall, I’ve had my best luck tempting perch with Mr. Twister curly-tailed grubs but 1.5-inch Berkley Gulp! jigging grubs work well, too.