Live like perches? (5)
I believe the answer is:
areas
'perches?' is the definition.
(perch is a kind of area)
'live like' is the wordplay.
'live' becomes 'are' ('they live' means 'they are').
'like' becomes 'as'.
'are'+'as'='AREAS'
(Other definitions for areas that I've seen before include "Spaces covered by two-dimensional surfaces" , "Zones" , "Localities" , "Geographical regions" , "Places" .)