first brush with death.

W has just discovered death.
The other day we were walking back home from daycare and we found a dead bird on the sidewalk. W wanted to pick it up but I told him no (eww bacteria) and said the bird was dead. The words were out before I had even time to think about what I was saying and I regretted it immediately. "What's dead mommy?" asked W.
Wow tricky, how will I get out of this one without traumatizing the wee one for life.
"Hmm honey, it's.... "
W interrupted me and continued
"Is it sleeping?"
Sleeping is good,
"Yes honey it's sleeping, it'll be sleeping for a long time" (regretting that one straight away to I don't want him to be afraid of sleeping)
"Is it going to fly away, mommy?"
"No darling, it won't fly anymore"
"Why not? What's going to happen to it?"
"Well, it probably had an accident and flew in to something so it won't fly anymore and now it's dead and someone (not us) will come and bury it"
"What's bury it, mommy?"
"It's when you put something or someone in the ground. But it won't be stuck underground forever it'll go somewhere else where other birds are" Boy am I rambling at this point.
"OK mommy"

And that was it, he then talked a bit more about the dead bird that was sleeping on the sidewalk and he wanted to go back and see it the next day. Luckily it was gone.

How do you talk to an almost three year old about death without scaring them?