Our final piece of reflection on the Biking for Biodiversity adventure has now been published on the Natural History Museum's "International Year of Biodiversity" website.

Hands up! Who hates cyclists? Check it out here: http://www.biodiversityislife.net/?q=views

Having traversed half of Europe visiting biodiversity projects and pondering what we saw and heard during these visits in the countless hours of cycling in between, we have come to some conclusions on the biodiversity of the Danube and beyond. Before our memories and tan lines fade we wanted to set out our four top thoughts:

1. NGOs are on the frontline of conservation

One of the most rewarding aspects of the trip was meeting passionate advocates working on the coal face of conservation. Seeing the work going on in and around national parks reminded us that many of the rare species and wild places we appreciated would not exist but for the passion and dedication of people like Jasmin Sadikovic in Croatia. Thank you to all who gave us an insight into the biodiversity of the Danube.

2. National parks are important but not enough

Perhaps it was the way we organised the trip but many of the projects we visited were in national parks and over time an impression built up in our minds that much of the effort that was going in to protecting natural environments along the Danube was occurring in these national parks and was often largely funded by tourism. Something about this realisation made us uneasy. Separating natural and human environments risks creating a mentality that human beings are apart from nature, not part of it. We concluded that projects that integrate the two, particularly in cities, should be given more attention. We would like to see sturgeon swimming beneath Belgrade bridges and white tailed eagles hunting in the Bratislava suburbs.

3. Ecosystems are easier to talk about than biodiversity

When we set out on this trip we wanted to find real stories that would bring to life the benefits that biodiversity provides. However more often than not the stories we found related to a particular species, or an ecosystem function. It was more or less impossible to find good stories that demonstrated the importance of the number and variety of species. That’s not to say it is not important – it is. The problem is that the connection between the ecosystem function that provides the human benefit and the number and variety of species in an area can be extremely complex and doesn't make for easy telling. It’s better to talk about particular species/ecosystems to connect with people but we still need to use biodiversity as a measure of the ecosystems health.

4. Focusing on utilitarian benefits of ecosystems may be useful, but struggles to stir passions

Our central question throughout the trip was ‘what has biodiversity ever done for us?’ We asked everyone we met for an answer to it. Responses varied: we heard interesting stories about everything from how locals were benefiting from tourism revenue generated by newly protected areas, to how ladybirds help make a good Sauvignon Blanc. They were interesting answers, but not passionate ones. The passionate answers were those that told us how being in an untamed natural environment made people feel and how it affected them when they were younger. The importance of these emotional responses should not be underestimated. Understanding that it is the biodiversity that we immerse ourselves in, that squirms across the palm of our hand, which fosters a personal connection to the natural world is crucial. Good science and the resulting reports and stats that are published each year are fundamental to the decision making processes of governments and businesses but to engage people emotionally you need experiences that connect them with nature.

"Biking the Danube for Biodiversity"

A web of peaceful channels banked by willows and reeds housing more birds than you can count on either side... We'd made it. In beautiful sunshine and with a sunset chorus we took a boat to the pristine lakes of Cotete and Nebunu in the heart of the Delta where the great Danube dissolves into the Black Sea.

Our companion for 19 days, the roads along the Danube did not give us an easy ride though. With one of the hottest days yet and with a surprising number of hills we had to struggle for even the last few kilometres. And an average of 150km a day during the trip was taking its toll as injuries to knees and ankles hindered progress and our total road side wheel repairs hit double figures.

But it was worth it. The serenity of the delta surpassed our expectation and it felt like we were entering alien territory as we looked around and saw life filling every square foot of space. From the electric blue dragonflies whizzing this way and that, to trees literally filled with birds sunning their wings, like the Cormorant adapted perfectly to this habitat and few others. When swimming in the cool waters we were surrounded by fish and lilies. It felt like we were on a wetlands safari. Before reaching this point the main Danube channel passes through 8 countries, a host of cultures and travels 3000km. Exactly as we had just done. We beamed with satisfaction and reflected on the grand scale of this river: the Amazon of Europe.

With a bump back to Earth we now find ourselves cramped up on an overnight train through Romania as we begin our return journey. We've got a good couple of days' travelling ahead of us to get home, but in that time we also feel we have a lot of different learning to digest around our central question "What has biodiversity ever done for us?". We'll share our final thoughts once we're back, so stay tuned, but in the meantime we'd love to hear from you if anything we've seen or done has grabbed your attention. Post us a comment!

After what seems like an enormous number of days slogging along on the bikes in the staggering Romanian sun, not to mention traversing the not-so-impressive Romanian roads, we arrived on Tuesday at the Bulgarian border. Today is our penultimate day on the road, and this is the first opportunity we've had to tell you what we learned about the importance of biodiversity in Bulgaria, accompanied by some local wine, a hotel and home cooked food.

In the Roussanski Lom region of Bulgaria, some of the Danube watershed's rarest species of birds co-exist amongst flourishing communities and burgeoning economic activity. In contrast to our previous visits in Austria and Hungary, however, where economic activity and nature conservation are concepts kept largely separate, here the philosophy is very much that they should, indeed must, go hand in hand for each to achieve long term success.

For example, there is a new pilot payment scheme in the region where farmers are now being paid to time the harvesting of their meadows in relation to local birds' nesting cycles. So whereas the birds were previously worthless (in economic terms) to local people, government funding is now coming in so that eggs and young birds are not destroyed before they have had a chance to leave the area. And all because governments have recognised the fundamental value of the biodiversity in the region.

This connection to the land is a theme we have seen in many scenarios on our journey, not least in relation to tourism, which was the basis of our next stop. Tsvetana runs a guest house (www.kladenca.com) as part of a local co-operative that supports lower impact and more traditional food and craft practices. As you can see, she bakes a mean loaf, and if this is the output of lower environmental impact food production, we're all in favour!

Meanwhile, up the road, we were off to learn more about the importance of biodiversity to the world of wine making, over a glass of chilled Sauvignon Blanc (proof enclosed) at the Raynoff Winery (www.raynoff.com). We knew already that local micro climates and soil characteristics are critical to growing good grapes. But we were fascinated to hear that vineyard owners are also huge fans of ladybirds. Not only are they great natural pest control (thereby reducing the need for, and cost of, pesticides) but they are also fantastic indicators of a healthy soil and vine system. As we can testify, looking after the little critters in your vineyard certainly delivers fine results!

So we have around 200km still to go, and the Danube Delta for our final biodiversity landmark beckons. We're battling blistering heat, broken spokes and punctures, and as of right now Will is chasing wild dogs who have stolen his shoes. It feels like a long way and a lot of sweat is still to come, but by this time tomorrow we should have finished our journey. Stay tuned!

So we mentioned yesterday that we crossed the Iron Gate dam from Serbia to Romania. What we didn't have time to tell you was that this is the site of a major campaign to restore the native sturgeon's migratory route to its former glory.

Not heard of sturgeon? Well you've probably heard of caviar and these are the fish that produce those eggs, so already you can sense their economic importance. Sturgeon have actually been around since the time of the dinosaurs and in their prime can grow to the size of a small bus. Not sure how you would go about taking their eggs, come to think of it!

But unfortunately this fish is now close to extinction. One thing that certainly isn't helping is the building of dams on the migratory route the fish use up river to their spawning grounds. Hydro power may be renewable energy, but it is not consequence free - a fact we in the UK will be aware of around the debate over whether to harness the tidal power of the Severn Estuary. So at the Iron Gate dam, WWF are working hard with local partners to raise funds for a major project to allow the sturgeon to "climb" the dam and continue to migrate to their spawning grounds. They say they have a lot of persuasion ahead of them.

So "why bother?" we asked the head of the project. "Good question" she said! She followed on by saying that, "we are all looking for a short and snappy answer to the question, what have certain types of biodiversity been doing for humans, and therefore why should they be worth our efforts to safeguard their future? But there just isn't such a short and pithy response; the best way to get a handle on the answer is to take people to experience areas where biodiversity is still in its natural state and then compare that to places like the Netherlands where they have realised so forcefully that the destruction of ecosystems has left their country much more vulnerable to flooding (so they are now pumping millions of euros into restoring those original natural habitats)."

That brings it home pretty powerfully. So if we work to create a habitat in which the sturgeon can continue to reproduce and avoid extinction, even while we extract valuable renewable energy from the river, what will that mean for the health and stability of the wider Danube ecosystem? What additional benefits will it bring us?

(Rhetorical question posed from a sweaty, damp tent in a Romanian field of poppeys, somewhere near the Danube...night night!)

As you can see in the video, today we crossed the giant iron gate dam that serves as a border between Romania and Serbia. This was a mixed feeling as we look forward to Romania, we were sad to leave Serbia behind as it had exceeded our expectations in so many ways. Not least our fantastic hosts in Belgrade where Milos and his family gave us such a welcome. We found it to be an attractive country with welcoming people and this will stick out in our minds once we return home.

We've even heard that we were featured on a Croatian and Serbian TV channel! And the number of friendly hoots from passing cars suggests this may be the case after all...

In a wetland between Croatia and Serbia covered with land mines left over from a warring past, support for biodiversity is fostering cooperation. Despite improved government relations, there are still border disputes between these neighbouring countries. International efforts to support relations and maintain stability continue. Against this backdrop of political and economic activity, in wetland areas either side of the border, such as the Kopacki Rit Nature Park, people are already working together to protect biodiversity. They are aiming to help local communities develop in parallel with nature, rather than in spite of it and have plans for an EU-funded research project to show how more of this work could actually create jobs rather than prevent them. On our brief visit we saw a pair of endangered black stalks, wild pigs and a herd of red deer and it is the nurturing of this type of wetland animal life that local people believe could play a part in attracting visitors, and the related economic development, to this region. It's fascinating that people here are also seeing that such international collaborative projects can strengthen relations and help foster greater mutual understanding across borders - this region is even the site of one of the world's three "bicycle peace trails" between Croatia and Serbia (the others include the border between North and South Korea, so not a guaranteed success strategy!).

So we're here finding out what biodiversity has ever done for us; it seems that beyond what we are already discovering about direct benefits to people, the variety of life could even be playing a role in bringing together different communities who, in the past, have not found much in common.

To find out more, check out the websites of the wetland area and the NGO, project managed by Jasmin Sadikovic (pictured), that is doing such great work there: http://www.zeleni-osijek.hr and http://www.zlatna-greda.org

In our fourth country and as our third capital city, Budapest was a big milestone. We're arrived here having cycled just under 1000km and at the end of day 7. One third of the journey banked as Pete reports in the video opposite the Parliament building below.

Coincidentally we also arrived on the day the new government was sworn in. The new Hungarian parliament will have green party members for the first time - as is the case in the UK this year. We were lucky to be introduced by our host to one of those new green party parlimentarians last night - a young and eager politician!

Tomorrow we head south. Next milestone will be Osijek in Croatia on Tuesday where we will meet a team working on a new transboundary nature reserve across Croatia, Serbia and Hungary.