Caterpillar Infestation in Texas may be Ruddy Dagger Moth Caterpillars

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Caterpillars have eaten my entire tree!
Location: Austin, TX
April 23, 2012 4:30 pm
While working on our ranch we kept having these guys drop out of the tree on us. There are 100s of them. They have cleaned the tree of all of its leaves and left only the leaf veins.
Can you tell me anything about them?
Signature: S Ross

Possibly Ruddy Dagger Moth Caterpillar

Dear S Ross,
We believe your caterpillar is related to the Tent Caterpillars, but we are currently unable to access BugGuide to attempt a more specific identification.  We suspect that higher than normal caterpillar populations in Texas have resulted in greater populations of Caterpillar Hunters as well, based on reports we have received recently.

Update:  April 15, 2014
A comment indicates this might be a Ruddy Dagger Moth Caterpillar based on this BugGuide image.

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