Not surprisingly, hybrids look like a combination of their parents. But, like a striped bass, hybrids have two patches of teeth on the tongue, not one. The lines along their sides are distinct, but usually broken. Hybrids also exhibit a deeper body than that ofstriped bass.

In the Coosa system in Georgia, hybrids are stocked into Carters and Allatoona lakes. None of the fish are planted into the rivers, but hybrids that have made their way over the dams do occasionally show up in the stream.

So what do these biology and geography lessons have to do catching fish? Everything, really: If you want to catch highly migratory fish, you have to find them first, and an understanding of what goes on in these species' lives is vital to accomplishing that. A hole slam full of fish one month may have few if any a short time later.

Spring is the season of rebirth, so it's appropriate that early spring, when white bass and stripers head upstream to spawn, signals the beginning of the Coosa's best fishing.

The first to make the trip are white bass. Exactly when the peak of the run happens has no cut-and-dried answer. Sometime in March is going to offer the best fishing. Whenever the water temperature climbs above 50 degrees, things are going to start happening.

The best place to find white bass is near current breaks. The fish often relate to fallen trees or other cover that provides refuge from the moving water. Creek mouths are also prime places to find schools of white bass during the spawn. Other features to key in on, especially in the later stages of the run, are sandy bars and banks.

The key to a great day of white bass fishing is to keep moving until you find the fish. Don't spend too much time in any one area, because if the fish are there, they usually strike. The next good hole up or down the river may be loaded with fish, even if the one you are at is barren.

If a good bite suddenly stops, before you pack up and leave in search of greener pastures, try making a few casts deeper or shallower. When fishing slows, often a change in the depth you are targeting finds the fish again.

The boat ramp at Mayo's Bar Lock and Dam is the favorite jumping off point for white bass anglers on the Coosa River. The area is not just for boat anglers either. Fishing off the old lock structure is probably the best place in Georgia for bank anglers to get in on some fast and furious white bass fishing.